[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 152 (2006), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 11997]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




    DEMOCRATS WORKING TO EXPAND OPPORTUNITY TO MINIMUM WAGE WORKERS

  (Mrs. JONES of Ohio asked and was given permission to address the 
House for 1 minute.)
  Mrs. JONES of Ohio. Mr. Speaker, House Democrats want to give 
minimum-wage workers their first pay raise in 9 years. Can you imagine 
working 9 years and never have a pay raise? Gas went up, milk went up, 
housing went up, electricity went up, and the House Republicans are 
doing everything they can to avoid the issue.
  Last week, seven Republicans on the House Appropriations Committee 
voted with Democrats to increase the minimum wage from $5.15 to $7.25 
as part of the Labor-HHS appropriations bill, but now the leaders of 
the Republican Party refuse to bring this bill to the floor, hoping 
they can skirt the issue until after election.
  Can you imagine if you had to wait till after an election to get some 
more money to buy that gas that is $3 a gallon?
  The Republican leaders must have done a lot of arm twisting over the 
weekend because when Democrats called for an increase in the minimum 
wage on another appropriations bill yesterday, not one of those seven 
who were with us last week, who had the guts to be with us last week, 
were with us yesterday.
  I just cannot understand why the House Republicans refuse to allow a 
floor vote on minimum wage. They will not do it because they know the 
American people will not vote for them if they do not increase the 
rate.

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