Policy Resolution LMV-15-18

Supporting a Sustainable Minimum Wage
Labor, Military, and Veterans Affairs (LMV) Committee

WHEREAS, the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL) has an unwavering commitment to helping working families struggling to live on limited means;

WHEREAS, the federal minimum wage has not been raised since 2009;

WHEREAS, eighteen states, Guam, and the U.S. Virgin Islands have the same minimum wages as the federal standard of $7.25;

WHEREAS, in 2014 the minimum wage will lose 1.7 percent of its value and will continue to lose value every year because of inflation;

WHEREAS, over 27 million workers would see a direct or indirect raise in their wages if the minimum wage were raised, according to the Economic Policy Institute;

WHEREAS, President Barack Obama called for an increase to the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour in his 2014 State of the Union;

WHEREAS, a full-time worker earning the current minimum wage only makes $14,500 a year;

WHEREAS, 15 percent of the minimum-wage workforce are Black or African American despite comprising 11.5 percent of the overall workforce; and

WHEREAS, NBCSL recognizes raising the minimum wage will help all workers but especially African Americans.

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED, the National Black Caucus of State Legislators (NBCSL) supports the President’s proposal to immediately raise the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour, and urges all state legislatures to adopt this level at a minimum as well as index the minimum wage inflation;

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that NBCSL strongly urges Congress to take federal action and raise the minimum wage to $10.10 per hour and index the minimum wage to rise with inflation every year; and

BE IT FINALLY RESOLVED, that a copy of this resolution be transmitted to the President of the United States, the Vice President of the United States, members of the United States House of Representatives and the United States Senate, and other federal and state government officials as appropriate.

  • SPONSOR: Senator Jeffrey Hayden (MN)
  • Committee of Jurisdiction: Labor, Military, and Veterans’ Affairs Policy Committee
  • Certified by Committee Chair: Representative Sharon Beasley-Teague (GA)
  • Ratified in Plenary Session: Ratification Date is December 12, 2014
  • Ratification is certified by: Representative Joe Armstrong (TN), President