State of Maryland “Fight for $15” Could Increase Minimum Wage to $15 by 2023
The Prince George’s County Council, during session on Tuesday, January 30, voted unanimously to adopt CR-5-2018, a resolution supporting statewide legislation to increase Maryland’s minimum wage to $15 an hour by 2023.
Council Chair Dannielle Glaros says it is time for a statewide minimum wage increase.
“We have already established a ‘regional minimum wage’ with our neighbors in Montgomery County and the District of Columbia, but there is clearly more that should be done. A statewide $15 minimum wage could level the playing field and reverse decades of growing pay inequality between lower-paid workers and the middle class. If we want to grow and improve as a County, we have to do what we can to improve the quality of life for working families.”
In 2013, the County Council enacted CB-94-2013 as part of a collaborative effort with the District of Columbia and Montgomery County to establish a ‘regional minimum wage,’ gradually increasing the minimum wage in Prince George’s County to $11.50 by 2017. In 2014, the Maryland General Assembly passed legislation to increase the state minimum wage rate to $10.10 by 2018. The federal minimum wage, which has not increased since 2009, is currently $7.25 an hour.
Under the legislation, the Council supports a statewide bill increasing the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2023, provided the wage is adjusted for inflation annually in accordance with the Consumer Price Index; the exemptions for youth and seasonal employees are reviewed; and an increase in the Developmental Disabilities Administration rate for wages and wages for tipped workers are addressed.
The Council also voted to authorize the Chair’s signature on Council correspondence regarding the “State of Maryland Fight for $15.” The letter, addressed to Governor Larry Hogan, Senate President Mike Miller and Speaker of the House Michael Busch, expresses the Council’s support for statewide legislation to increase the minimum wage to $15 an hour. To review the Council letter, click HERE.
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All legislative powers of Prince George’s County are vested in the County Council. The County Council sits as the District Council on zoning and land use policy, and as the Board of Health to govern and guide health policy. The County Council meets as a legislative body on Tuesdays in the Council Hearing Room on the first floor of the County Administration Building in Upper Marlboro. For more information on the Prince George’s County Council, please visit http://pgccouncil.us
