Research & Commentary: As Sessions Begin, No State Legislatures Should Consider Minimum Wage Hikes
January 15, 2021
By Samantha Fillmore
In this Research & Commentary, Samantha Fillmore examines what minimum wage hikes will do to small businesses and why state legislatures should not pursue such hikes while in session.
State legislatures are kicking off 2021 with legislative sessions focused on economic recovery after a highly tumultuous 2020 and the accompanying economic fallout of the coronavirus pandemic. Every state in the union experienced a shortfall in previously projected tax revenues due to state and federally imposed lockdowns and shelter-in-place orders. Every American is hopeful that 2021 will pose fewer economic challenges and lawmakers know this. Therefore, it is not surprising that some lawmakers are considering implementing minimum wage increases in an attempt to provide relief to their struggling constituencies. However, this is a deeply ineffective way to improve the economy. Moreover, arbitrary minimum wage hikes produce unintended consequences that can inflict even more pain upon the people they are supposed to benefit.
https://www.heartland.org/publications-resources/publications/research--commentary-as-sessions-begin-no-state-legislatures-should-consider-minimum-wage-hikes
