Whether Maine will hike the statewide hourly minimum wage to $15.00 per hour is in Gov. Janet Mills’ hands after lawmakers voted this week on a proposal that would also establish new annual cost of living adjustments.
The bill, LD 1376, passed by only a single vote in the House of Representatives, with a handful of Democratic lawmakers bucking party leadership to oppose the bill.
The Senate approved the bill by a larger margin Tuesday.
Originally, the bill contained language that, in addition to raising the minimum wage to $15 at the start of next year, would have mandated an annual increase of $1 through January 1, 2033. Consequently, LD 1376 as originally proposed would have resulted in a minimum wage of at least $24 per hour at the start of 2033.
It was this clause of the bill that drew the most criticism during its public hearing. Testimony from several people representing Maine’s business interests cited the annual increase their primary point of contention with the legislation.
Others, however, raised more general concerns about increasing the state minimum wage.
Alison Sucy, Chief Operating Officer and Director of Government Affairs for the Maine Tourism Association, offered testimony in opposition to the bill.
“The increases in the minimum wage that took place over the past several years and continue to grow with annual indexing pose a significant challenge to many of our members,” she said. “Many of our smaller members are struggling under increased wages, benefits, supply costs, and other costs of doing business; and rather than expand or reinvest in their businesses, they are hiring fewer workers or providing fewer work hours for employees just to remain operational.”
Sucy explained that while many positions within the tourism industry, including those which are entry-level, already pay well above the minimum wage, forcing all businesses across the state to raise their starting wage would be “cost prohibitive.”
Alexander Price of the Maine Jobs Council argued in his testimony that “what appears to be well-intentioned may do considerable harm to the people it aims to help.”
“Individual pieces of legislation, such as LD 1376, are not the solution to solving Maine’s economic problems,” Price testified.
“We encourage this committee to take a step back, look at the bigger picture of where Maine ranks compared with the rest of New England and the nation, and start taking a more comprehensive look at how taxes, regulations, infrastructure, workforce challenges, and other issues that act as a barrier to job creation in our state,” Price said.
“Maine needs to develop and follow a long-term strategic to make us more competitive, not less,” he said.
The proposal now awaits a decision from Gov. Janet Mills, who has given only tepid support of the proposal.
Sure. That’s the problem with Maine’s economy—wages are too low. ROFL. Maine used to have a robust industrial base. Where is that now? Enough with the ridiculous taxes, regulations, and policies coming out of Augusta. Encourage entrepreneurs, become inviting to business and industry, and lower taxes. That’s how you fix the economy, not with mandated wage controls.
Minimum wage is supposed to be just that minimum, not a livable wage as it it is a BEGINING wage, and incentive to move up, for teens and young adults. It’s absurd to expect it to be a livable wage. This is already having a snowball effect for businesses, large and small, because now people who have been employed in these same businesses for years will deserve as much an increase in their pay. Thus the trickle down effect of inflation, which is already out of control. This is moronic on so many levels!