On the recordApril 28, 2016
I thank my colleague from the State of California, my home State of California, for yielding. I am glad to stand here today in support of the Raise the Wage Act. I want to thank my colleagues for standing with me today to promote the benefits of increasing the minimum wage. While critics warn of mass layoffs and economic calamity, studies consistently show that a higher minimum wage will stimulate the economy and lift workers out of poverty. We cannot allow ideology and partisanship to stop millions of workers from earning a living wage. A report on poverty in my own community, which my office produced last year, revealed the urgency of this issue. Here is what we found: Last year, a single parent of two kids working full time at the minimum wage in Riverside, California, was likely to fall $600 short of what they need to get by every month. Not only does this situation violate the premise of the American Dream that working hard and playing by the rules will land you in the middle class, it also damages our economy. A University of California, Berkeley study found that low wages cost American taxpayers $152 billion each year on social welfare programs for working families. We are effectively subsidizing companies that do not pay their workers a living wage. Now, there is a myth--a myth--that the typical minimum wage earner is a high school student, a high school student living at home working part time.…
