Not sure if anyone has seen this news, though in the coming days the Senate parliamentary will make a decision on if $15 an hour federal minimum wage can be included in COVID 19 stimulus bill.
The only reason the parliamentary must make a decision is b/c Dems are trying to pass through budget reconciliation which only requires 51 votes instead of the normal 60 votes (w cloture) in the Senate. The caveat to using this method is that the parts included in these budget reconciliation bills must have substantial budgetary impact.
Here’s a bit from the MarketWatch article about the process:
Senate rules require that items in such a bill must have a substantial budget impact that is not “merely incidental” to the language’s main intended purpose.
MacDonough has been meeting with Democrats who have tried convincing her that their minimum wage provision meets that test and with Republicans who have told her it doesn’t. Democrats want to raise the federal floor, fixed at $7.25 hourly since 2009, to $15 over five years.
What do ya folks think about the fate of this portion of the bill being left to a non partisan appointed member of the Senate
https://www.marketwatch.com/story/fate-of-federal-15-minimum-wage-rests-in-hands-of-senate-parliamentarian-elizabeth-macdonough-01614276142