<font size="5"><center>G.O.P. Nears Vote to Increase U.S. Wage</font size></center>
New York Times
By CARL HULSE
Published: July 28, 2006
WASHINGTON, July 27 — Under intense pressure from their moderate wing, House Republican leaders moved on Thursday toward allowing a vote Friday on an increase in the minimum wage before sending anxious lawmakers home for a month of campaigning in the battle for control of Congress.
House Republicans were still assembling a proposal Thursday night. But the momentum had clearly shifted in favor of considering an increase of at least $2 in the $5.15 an hour minimum wage, despite strong resistance from conservative Republicans and the party’s allies in the business community.
“I have a high degree of confidence that we are going to have a package presented tomorrow,” said Representative Sherwood Boehlert, Republican of New York and a centrist who has been clamoring for a wage vote, as he left a meeting on Thursday in the office of Speaker J. Dennis Hastert.
Mr. Boehlert and others have argued that Republican support for an increase in the federal wage is essential to shore up the party’s strength among blue-collar and low-income workers who could decide critical House contests in the Northeast and Midwest.
The willingness of the leadership to relent on a wage vote after months of reluctance illustrates Republican nervousness about the November elections, and a desire to break for the August recess on a politically positive note. Although many states now require higher wage levels, the federal minimum wage has remained at $5.15 an hour since 1997.
“Clearly, there is an effort to try to proceed,” said Representative John A. Boehner, Republican of Ohio, the majority leader.
Democrats have been trying to highlight the issue for months, accusing Republicans of blocking an increase while allowing Congressional pay to rise steadily. And they warned that Republicans might try to tie the increase to an unacceptable piece of legislation on taxes or health care as a “poison pill” to drive off Democrats and make certain the increase could not clear the Senate or become law.
“American workers deserve a fair vote on a minimum wage increase, not a vote on a bill that’s larded up with harmful provisions,” said Representative George Miller of California, the senior Democrat on the Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Lawmakers and senior officials said the details of the proposal were still being developed. Members of the leadership said they expected that the plan would be to raise the pay scale gradually, reaching at least $7.25 an hour over about two years.
Others suggested that the legislation could also be tied to a Republican proposal to create small-business health plans, which they say could decrease the costs of health insurance for small employers.
“It is not reasonable to increase the payroll of a small business without finding a way to decrease the expenses of small business,” said Representative Steven C. LaTourette of Ohio, another Republican behind the push for a minimum wage vote. He noted that more than 40 Democrats backed the health proposal when it was last considered, and said the Republican leadership did not intend to make the wage bill unacceptable to Democrats.
Many House Republicans have for years opposed bringing a wage measure to the floor, saying it was not the government’s role to set pay rates and that requiring a higher minimum wage would discourage employers from creating new jobs. They have been backed by lobbying groups like the National Restaurant Association and the National Federation of Independent Business.
Republican moderates used a closed party meeting on Thursday to make their case for a vote, saying it was crucial for helping to dispel the party’s antiworker image.
The moderates ran into opposition from conservatives who said the wage proposal could turn off campaign contributors with the elections looming and drive away the party’s business base. But some lawmakers said opponents also recognized the political necessity of giving moderates some political cover, a prospect more appealing than potentially losing their majority in the House.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/28/washington/28cong.html?ref=washington
New York Times
By CARL HULSE
Published: July 28, 2006
WASHINGTON, July 27 — Under intense pressure from their moderate wing, House Republican leaders moved on Thursday toward allowing a vote Friday on an increase in the minimum wage before sending anxious lawmakers home for a month of campaigning in the battle for control of Congress.
House Republicans were still assembling a proposal Thursday night. But the momentum had clearly shifted in favor of considering an increase of at least $2 in the $5.15 an hour minimum wage, despite strong resistance from conservative Republicans and the party’s allies in the business community.
“I have a high degree of confidence that we are going to have a package presented tomorrow,” said Representative Sherwood Boehlert, Republican of New York and a centrist who has been clamoring for a wage vote, as he left a meeting on Thursday in the office of Speaker J. Dennis Hastert.
Mr. Boehlert and others have argued that Republican support for an increase in the federal wage is essential to shore up the party’s strength among blue-collar and low-income workers who could decide critical House contests in the Northeast and Midwest.
The willingness of the leadership to relent on a wage vote after months of reluctance illustrates Republican nervousness about the November elections, and a desire to break for the August recess on a politically positive note. Although many states now require higher wage levels, the federal minimum wage has remained at $5.15 an hour since 1997.
“Clearly, there is an effort to try to proceed,” said Representative John A. Boehner, Republican of Ohio, the majority leader.
Democrats have been trying to highlight the issue for months, accusing Republicans of blocking an increase while allowing Congressional pay to rise steadily. And they warned that Republicans might try to tie the increase to an unacceptable piece of legislation on taxes or health care as a “poison pill” to drive off Democrats and make certain the increase could not clear the Senate or become law.
“American workers deserve a fair vote on a minimum wage increase, not a vote on a bill that’s larded up with harmful provisions,” said Representative George Miller of California, the senior Democrat on the Committee on Education and the Workforce.
Lawmakers and senior officials said the details of the proposal were still being developed. Members of the leadership said they expected that the plan would be to raise the pay scale gradually, reaching at least $7.25 an hour over about two years.
Others suggested that the legislation could also be tied to a Republican proposal to create small-business health plans, which they say could decrease the costs of health insurance for small employers.
“It is not reasonable to increase the payroll of a small business without finding a way to decrease the expenses of small business,” said Representative Steven C. LaTourette of Ohio, another Republican behind the push for a minimum wage vote. He noted that more than 40 Democrats backed the health proposal when it was last considered, and said the Republican leadership did not intend to make the wage bill unacceptable to Democrats.
Many House Republicans have for years opposed bringing a wage measure to the floor, saying it was not the government’s role to set pay rates and that requiring a higher minimum wage would discourage employers from creating new jobs. They have been backed by lobbying groups like the National Restaurant Association and the National Federation of Independent Business.
Republican moderates used a closed party meeting on Thursday to make their case for a vote, saying it was crucial for helping to dispel the party’s antiworker image.
The moderates ran into opposition from conservatives who said the wage proposal could turn off campaign contributors with the elections looming and drive away the party’s business base. But some lawmakers said opponents also recognized the political necessity of giving moderates some political cover, a prospect more appealing than potentially losing their majority in the House.
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/07/28/washington/28cong.html?ref=washington
