Voters to decide minimum wage

Legislature killed two minimum wage bills

Tom Kenworthy
USA Today

This year's election could bring a watershed in the nearly 70-year history of the federal minimum wage: For the first time, a majority of states could require higher pay than the federal rate of $5.15 an hour.

This year, legislatures in 10 states have enacted laws mandating a higher minimum than federal law requires, bringing 23 states and the District of Columbia above that threshold.

But in 2006, the Louisiana legislature killed two bills that would have raised the minimum wage by $1 to $6.15 in Louisiana. They were sponsored by Sen. Charles Jones, D-Monroe, and Rep. Willie Hunter, D-Monroe.

On Nov. 7, voters in six states will decide ballot measures to raise the minimum wage to as much as $6.85 an hour, with automatic adjustments for inflation. Some of the states would allow lower pay for small companies and for workers getting tips.

The initiatives to change the base pay - by amending the state constitution or changing law - will be on the ballot in Arizona, Colorado, Ohio, Nevada, Missouri and Montana.

If they all pass, it would equal the number of minimum wage ballot measures adopted in the 14-year span ending in 2004, said Jennie Bowser of the National Conference of State Legislatures.

"I expect to see most or all of them pass," she said. "I imagine it's going to be a pretty popular subject."

The battles over the minimum wage come as government figures show wages are not keeping up with inflation and amid fierce contests to control Congress.

Advocates for raising the wage such as the Economic Policy Institute, a liberal think tank, said inflation has eaten away the last increase by Congress in 1997. Raising the wage from $5.15 to $6.85 an hour would boost a worker's annual pay from $10,712 to $14,248.

Opponents said the pay raise would hurt businesses such as restaurants that depend on lower-wage workers, and be a setback for entry-level employees.

"There will be fewer jobs for teenagers and low-income workers who come in to get a skill," said Jan Rigg, spokeswoman for Respect Colorado's Constitution, a business coalition opposing the increase. "This isn't a debate about haves and have-nots, it's about what we all want: a good work force."

All six states with minimum wage issues on the ballot are election battleground states this fall. Montana, Ohio and Missouri have Senate contests rated as tossups by "The Cook Political Report." Arizona, Ohio, Colorado and Nevada have competitive governors' contests. Arizona, Colorado and Ohio have some of the most closely watched House elections in the country.

Brookings Institution scholar Matt Fellowes said Democrats hope the wage initiatives will draw more of their voters to the polls and underscore "that under Republicans, financial insecurity has increased."

The minimum wage measures also reflect frustration with Washington and state legislatures that have failed to approve raises, Fellowes said. Republicans control Congress and one or both legislative branches in four of the six states with ballot measures this fall.

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