Colorado Capitol Report

In this Capitol Report:

• Local Minimum-Wage Bill Dies in Senate Committee
• ALERT: Fed Council to meet May 22!
• Legislative Agenda

Local Minimum-Wage Bill Dies in Senate Committee

Yesterday, a Republican-controlled Senate committee on a party-line 3-to-2 vote killed a House Democrat bill that would have allowed local governments to increase the minimum wage within their jurisdictions above that of the state minimum wage.

The CACI-opposed bill, HB-1368, died before the Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee.

Sonia Riggs, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Colorado Restaurant Association, a CACI member, testified before the Committee against the bill.  She also spoke on behalf of CACI.

The Senate sponsors were Senator Mike Merrifield (D-Colorado Springs) and Senator Dominick Moreno (D-Commerce City).  The House sponsors were Representative Jessie Danielson (D-Wheat  Ridge) and Representative Jevon Melton (D-Aurora).

The measure was advocated by such liberal organizations as The Bell Policy Center and The Colorado Center on Law and Policy.  Similar proposals have died in past sessions.

The minimum-wage, local-control issue will likely play a role in legislative elections this year and return to the 2019 session of the legislature.

HB-1368 is part of a package of bills this session—as in past sessions–targeting the “income gap” advocated by the House Democrats, which statehouse participants and analysts call “messaging bills,” that are aimed at motivating the party’s base during an election year.

As such, the bills are opposed by most business organizations, including CACI, the Colorado Chamber of Commerce.  In one way or another, these bills would increase the cost of doing business in Colorado.

Here’s the legislature’s summary of the introduced bill:

Summary of Legislation

Current state law prevents local governments from enacting minimum wage laws separate from those of the state.  This bill repeals that provision and allows units of local government to establish minimum wages for individuals performing work while physically present within their jurisdictions through their governing body, an initiative, or referendum.

Background

Colorado’s minimum wage.  Prior to 2007, Colorado’s minimum wage law was set by federal law.  In 2006, Colorado voters adopted an amendment to the state constitution that raised the minimum wage from $5.15 per hour to $6.85 per hour beginning in 2007, and from $2.13 to $3.02 less than the state minimum wage for tipped workers.  In 2016, Colorado voters again amended the state constitution to increase the state minimum wage from $8.31 to $9.30 per hour beginning on January 1, 2017, after which it increases annually by $0.90 per hour until it reaches $12.00 per hour on January 1, 2020.  Beginning January 1, 2021, it will be adjusted each year thereafter by the increase in the Consumer Price Index.  The federal minimum wage is currently set at $7.25 per hour, and $2.13 for tipped workers.

The bill’s Fiscal Note also provided an analysis of the introduced bill, which was not amended in the House.

For information on HB-1368, contact Loren Furman, CACI Senior Vice President, State and Federal Relations, at 303.866.9642.

For more information on this bill and news media coverage, read:

“Colorado Senate Committee kills effort to let cities, counties raise minimum wage,” by Ed Sealover, The Denver Business Journal, May 4^th.

“House Democrats; Local Minimum Wage Increase Bill set for Senate Committee Hearing,” CACI Colorado Capitol Report, May 1^st.

ALERT: Fed Council to meet May 22!

Opioids + Overseas Ordering = Newest Threat to CO Workforce

Legislative Agenda

Below is a list of bills and their status on which The State Chamber Policy Councils have taken positions. For more information on the bills, contact Loren Furman, Senior Vice President, State and Federal Relations, at 303.866.9642.