Minimum wage issue on verge of hitting threshold

Backers of a proposed constitutional amendment that would gradually increase Florida’s minimum wage to $15 an hour are on the verge of submitting enough petition signatures to get on the November 2020 ballot.

The political committee Florida For A Fair Wage had submitted 763,330 valid petition signatures to the state as of mid-day Monday, just under the 766,200-signature threshold to reach the ballot, according to the Florida Division of Elections website. Political committees face a February deadline for submitting signatures.

Florida For A Fair Wage, led by prominent Orlando attorney John Morgan, also needs the state Supreme Court to sign off on its proposed ballot wording before the minimum-wage increase could go before voters. The proposed amendment would increase the state’s minimum wage to $10 an hour on Sept. 30, 2021 and increase it by $1 each year until it hits $15 an hour on Sept. 30, 2026. The state’s minimum wage this year is $8.46 an hour. 

© 2019 The News Service of Florida.