Even if Gov. Pat Quinn called the House into special session this month for a vote on the minimum wage, there’s no guarantee representatives will consider a bill.
That’s where things stand as the House adjourned for 2014 without calling the legislation, a couple of hours before the Senate ran it anyway.
“The people have spoken,” said State Sen. Kimberly Lightford (D-Maywood), referring to the non-binding referendum on Election Day.
It was a party-line vote, with State Sen. Kyle McCarter (R-Lebanon) says the message is all wrong: that we should encourage our youth to aspire to no more than a minimum-wage job. He says a $14-per-hour minimum in North Dakota is market-driven.
Lightford’s bill would raise the minimum from the current $8.25 to $9 in July, increasing 50 cents per year to a peak of $11 in 2019. The federal minimum is $7.25.
HB 4733 has passed the Senate, 39-18-1.