2001-01-18                     Senate Journal                      Page 0111
SB 46                                                                                             
SENATE BILL NO. 46 BY THE SENATE RULES COMMITTEE                                                    
BY REQUEST OF THE GOVERNOR, entitled:                                                               
                                                                                                    
              "An Act relating to increasing the minimum hourly                                    
                 wage under the Alaska Wage and Hour Act; and                                      
          providing for an effective date."                                                         
                                                                                                    
was read the first time and referred to the Labor and Commerce and                                  
Finance Committees.                                                                                 
                                                                                                    
The following fiscal information was published today:                                               
 Fiscal Note No. 1, zero, Department of Administration                                              
 Fiscal Note No. 2, Department of Health and Social Services                                        
                                                                                                    
Governor's transmittal letter dated January 17:                                                     
                                                                                                    
Dear President Halford:                                                                             
                                                                                                    
At $5.65 an hour, Alaska's minimum wage is the lowest on the West                                   
Coast, some eighty-five cents under the next lowest minimum wage.                                   
A single parent working year-round at minimum wage earns only two-                                  
thirds of the poverty level for a family of three and cannot hope to rise                           
out of poverty. These are disturbing facts that must change.                                        
                                                                                                    
This bill I transmit today is meant to offer Alaska's low wage workers                              
a better quality of life by increasing the minimum wage to $6.40 on                                 
October 1, 2001, followed by a raise to $7.15 a year later. The wage                                
would then adjust annually to match inflation, increasing by pennies                                
per year, but protecting the minimal essential purchasing power of                                  
low-wage workers.                                                                                   
                                                                                                    

2001-01-18                     Senate Journal                      Page 0112
Alaska's current minimum wage is tied to the federal law. So we are                                 
reliant on whether Congress decides a raise is in order, rather than                                
being able to determine the wage needs specifically for Alaskans.                                   
This outdated relationship has caused our minimum wage to remain                                    
stagnant for as long as nine years, from 1981 to 1990. And it's                                     
currently been more than 3 years since the last increase.                                           
                                                                                                    
We know Alaska's economy rarely moves in exact synchronization                                      
with the rest of the country. To tie our workers' wages to what the rest                            
of the country is doing is a disservice to Alaskans. That is why it is so                           
important not only to raise Alaska's minimum wage, but to provide for                               
its continued adjustment to our local economy.                                                      
                                                                                                    
We have made great progress in the past four years in moving                                        
Alaskans from welfare to work. But in FY 2000, 22 percent of public                                 
assistance recipients entering the workforce earned less than $6.50 per                             
hour. Increasing the wage of these Alaskans will reduce the temporary                               
cash assistance needed to support their families.                                                   
                                                                                                    
Working for a minimum wage in Alaska should not mean a minimum                                      
quality of life. In the interest of allowing Alaskans the opportunity to                            
achieve financial independence, I urge your prompt and favorable                                    
action on this important measure.                                                                   
                                                                                                    
                                  Sincerely,                                                       
                                 /s/                                                                
                                 Tony Knowles                                                       
                                 Governor