Bart Stupak: “one of the issues which Congress must periodically address is the adjusting of the level of minimum wage. I did not say…”

“one of the issues which Congress must periodically address is the adjusting of the level of minimum wage. I did not say raise the minimum wage, I said adjust the minimum wage. The last adjustment of the minimum wage dollars took place in 1991. At that time the minimum wage was adjusted from $3.80 to the current level of $4.25. Despite that adjustment of 45 cents, the actual buying power of basic hourly compensation is estimated to have fallen by 50 cents because of inflation. In fact, the minimum wage is now 29-percent lower than it was in 1979 and, left unchanged, its real value will be at a 40-year low by January. In the absence of any kind of automatic cost- of-living adjustment, let us take the necessary step to bring this basic entry-level wage up to where it needs to be today. In the most simple way, we can positively affect the lives of millions of working Americans. Let us approve an adjustment in the minimum wage to $5.15 per hour over the next 2 years.”