“A renewed effort to change Colorado law to allow cities and counties to raise their minimum wage above statewide levels came to an end Thursday at the Legislature.
The Senate State, Veterans and Military Affairs Committee killed House Bill 1368, sponsored by Democratic Reps. Jessie Danielson of Wheat Ridge and Jovan Melton of Aurora, along a Republican-led, 3-2 party-line vote. And it did so at the request of business groups that argued a patchwork system of minimum-wage laws across Colorado would lead to labor migration and confusion among company operators.
Supporters of the bill — including some business owners — argued that high-cost cities such as Denver or Boulder should be allowed to demand a higher floor pay level than the $10.20 mark required throughout Colorado — a minimum wage that will rise to $12 an hour in 2020, according to a constitutional amendment passed in 2016.”
