Senate official deems minimum wage hike out for COVID-19 relief, so Democrats find a new approach
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The House is set to spend a long day finishing up work on a public lands bill, then working late into the evening into Saturday morning to pass the COVID-19 relief bill—the American Rescue Plan. One key provision of raising the minimum wage to $15 an hSenate official deems minimum wage hike out for COVID-19 relief, so Democrats find a new approach
The House is set to spend a long day finishing up work on a public lands bill, then working late into the evening into Saturday morning to pass the COVID-19 relief bill—the American Rescue Plan. One key provision of raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour was dealt a blow Thursday night when the Senate parliamentarian advised Senate leaders that it should not be included via budget reconciliation, the procedure Democrats are using to get the bill through the Senate without having to rely on any Republican votes. Speaker Nancy Pelosi said that the House would keep the provision in the bill, a decision reiterated by Jim McGovern, chair of the Rules Committee, which is preparing the bill for consideration on the floor. The provision couldn't be included, Parliamentarian Elizabeth MacDonough determined, because it runs afoul of the arcane Byrd Rule that sets parameters for reconciliation bills. Bernie Sanders, chair of the Budget Committee, responded to the ruling saying: «I strongly disagree with tonight's decision by the Senate parliamentarian … The [Congressional Budget Office] made it absolutely clear that raising the minimum wage to $15 an hour had a substantial budgetary impact and should be allowed under reconciliation. It is hard for me to understand how drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge was considered to be consistent with the Byrd Rule, while increasing the minimum wage is not.» That provision for Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) drilling was included in the Republicans' 2017 tax cuts bill, which was also passed by reconciliation. So, yes, it is hard to understand. Read more