By Chief Political Correspondent Michael Aron
NJ Today
Gov. Chris Christie says he wants to see a $1 hike in the minimum wage phased in over three years. His conditional veto message says that is the responsible way to raise the minimum wage to $8.25, not all at once. His Republican allies agree.
“It appears that the governor was reasonable. It sounds like it’s compromise, which he always said it’s a broad boulevard and that he came down with I think it’s a dollar over three years. It’s not tied in to an index, so therefore it’s consistent with what he thought that he said along the road that I’m willing to compromise and he did,” said Assemblyman Jon Bramnick.
The Democratically-controlled legislature approved two minimum wage bills recently — one that hikes the wage to $8.50 an hour and one that asks voters to approve a constitutional amendment hiking it to $8.25 from the current $7.25.
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Both bills contain an annual cost of living increase that tracks the consumer price index. The governor objects to that. Assembly Speaker Sheila Oliver objects to the governor’s veto.
“I think that to propose a 25-cent increase immediately with a 50 cents and then 25 cents, it would take people who earn minimum wage three years to earn a dollar increase in their pay. That is unacceptable given the realities of the cost of living in New Jersey,” Oliver said.
What happens now is that Oliver and Senate President Steve Sweeney will ask their members to approve a ballot referendum on the issue again. A simple majority two years running puts a question up for voter approval and bypasses the governor.
“You know he said he would never support a CPI. I think he’s completely wrong. People shouldn’t have to wait seven or eight years for elected officials all of a sudden their conscience bothers them and says you know we haven’t raised this thing in a long time,” Sweeney said.
Christie calls the Democratic approach lopsided. His phase-in includes a sweetener — a restoration of a 25 percent cut in the state earned income tax credit for low-wage earners.
“The governor needs to restore the earned income tax credit irregardless of a conversation about minimum wage,” Oliver said.
“I say he’s full of it, ’cause he must not care about the working poor. He’s gonna offer them a quarter. That’s not a fair approach to anything,” Sweeney said.