California "Fair Wage Act of 2016" $15 Minimum Wage Initiative (2016)
| California $15 Minimum Wage Initiative | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 8, 2016 | |
| Topic Minimum wage | |
| Status Not on the ballot | |
| Type State statute | Origin Citizens |
A $15 minimum wage initiative called "Fair Wage Act of 2016" (#15-0032) was not put on the November 8, 2016, ballot in California as an initiated state statute. The measure was certified for ballot, but proponents withdrew it on June 23, 2016, due to the passage of a $15 per hour minimum wage law by the California State Legislature.[1]
The measure was designed to increase the state's minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2021.
Initiative measure 15-0032 was supported by the Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW).[2][3]
On March 26, 2016, California legislators proposed legislation which was designed to raise the statewide minimum wage gradually until it reached $15 in 2022. Lawmakers achieved an agreement with the union behind the "Fair Wage Act of 2016" regarding this alternative legislation.[6]
On March 31, 2016, the California Legislature passed the alternative legislation, Senate Bill 3, and sent it to the desk of Gov. Jerry Brown (D). Gov. Brown signed the alternative legislation bill into law on April 4, 2016. California Council of SEIU withdrew its competing measure, Raise California's Wage and Paid Sick Days Act of 2016 (#15-0105A1) on April 1, 2016.[5][7][8]
Competing measures
The Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) and California's state council of the Service Employees International Union (SEIU) were divided by their efforts to sponsor competing $15 per hour minimum wage initiatives. SEIU-UHW, which represents about 80,000 healthcare workers in California, put its weight behind the "Fair Wage Act of 2016," which was designed to raise the state's minimum wage in increments until it reached $15 per hour in 2021. This initiative was certified for the ballot on March 22, 2016. According to Laphonza Butler, president of the state council of SEIU, petitioners continued signature collection efforts for the union's competing
initiative, the "Raise California's Wage and Paid Sick Days Act," despite the certification of the initiative backed by the United Healthcare Workers union. SEIU California stopped its signature gathering campaign after the California State Legislature approved and the Governor signed a $15 per hour minimum wage bill called Senate Bill 3. The state council's proposal was designed to increase the minimum wage to $15 per hour by 2020 for businesses with more than 25 workers. Smaller businesses would have been given until 2021 to increase their minimum pay to $15 per hour. The initiative was also written to allow all workers to earn a minimum of six paid sick days each year, rather than the three required as of March 2016. SEIU California represents about 700,000 employees and was the largest union in the state in 2016.[9][10]
If both initiatives had reached the ballot and were approved, the one with the most "yes" votes would entirely supersede the other.
Background
Senate Bill 3
In mid-March 2016, California legislators moved toward an agreement with the unions behind the competing 2016 minimum wage initiatives. If approved by the legislature, the proposed alternative, Senate Bill 3, was designed to gradually increase the statewide minimum wage until it reached $15 in 2022, with the wage tied to inflation thereafter. Businesses with fewer than 25 employees were given until 2023 to raise minimum wages to $15 per hour by the bill. The bill was also designed to allow the governor to delay minimum wage hikes in the event of an economic decline. Senate Bill 3 was given final approval by the California State Legislature on March 31, 2016. The legislature voted along party lines, with every "yes" vote on SB 3 coming from a Democratic lawmaker and all but two "no" votes coming from Republicans. Gov. Jerry Brown (D) signed SB 3 into law on April 4, 2016.[6][11][12]
SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West, the sponsoring group behind the "Fair Wage Act of 2016" initiative, which qualified for the November ballot on March 22, 2016, was involved with negotiations surrounding the approved legislation. Petitioners announced that they would likely withdraw their $15 per hour minimum wage initiative upon the enactment of Senate Bill 3. SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West spokesman, Sean Wherley, told KCRA News 3, however, that the organization would continue to “push ahead” with the Fair Wage Act until the bill was actually signed into law: “Ours is on the ballot. We want to be certain of what all this is...We are going ahead with it. If some agreement is signed into law, then our executive board would decide what to do. They would only make that decision after any agreement is signed into law.”
SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West was supposed to meet in early May in order to decide whether the initiative would be withdrawn in light of the governor's signing of SB 3, and the SEIU-UHW executive board did issue a resolution encouraging proponents to withdraw the measure on May 5, 2016.[11][13][14] On June 23, 2016, the "Fair Wage Act of 2016" was withdrawn from the ballot, according to the California secretary of state.[1] The state council of SEIU withdrew its initiative on April 1, 2016.[5]
|
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title was as follows:[2]
| “ | Minimum Wage. Increases and Future Adjustments. Initiative Statute.[15] | ” |
Ballot summary
The ballot summary was as follows:[2]
| “ | Under existing law, California’s minimum wage will increase from $9.00 per hour to $10.00 per hour on January 1, 2016. This measure increases the minimum wage to $11.00 per hour, effective January 1, 2017, and by $1.00 each of the next four years, to $15.00 per hour on January 1, 2021. Thereafter, adjusts the minimum wage annually based on the rate of inflation for the previous year, using the California Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers.[15] | ” |
Fiscal impact statement
Note: The fiscal impact statement for a California ballot initiative authorized for circulation is jointly prepared by the state's legislative analyst and its director of finance.
The fiscal impact statement was as follows:[16]
| “ | Change in annual state and local tax revenues potentially ranging from a loss of hundreds of millions of dollars to a gain of more than $1 billion. Changes in state revenues would affect required state budget reserves, debt payments, and funding for schools and community colleges. Increase in state and local government spending totaling billions of dollars per year.[15] | ” |
Full text
The full text of the measure read as follows:[17]
| “ | SEC. 1. Name.
This act shall be known as the Fair Wage Act of 2016. SEC. 2. Findings and Purpose. The People of California find and declare that: SEC 3. Section 1182.12 of the Labor Code is amended, to read: § 1182.12. Minimum wage SEC. 4. Amendment. Pursuant to subdivision (c) of Section 10 of Article II of the California Constitution, this Act may be amended either by a subsequent measure submitted to a vote of the people at a statewide election or by statute validly passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor, but only to further the purposes of the Act and not to reduce the minimum wage required by this Act. SEC 5. Severability. It is the intent of the People that the provisions of this Act are severable and that if any provision of this Act, or the application thereof to any person or circumstance, is held invalid, such invalidity shall not affect any other provision or application of this Act that can be given effect without the invalid provision or application.[15] |
” |
Support
- SEIU United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW)[18][19]
- Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom (D)[20]
- Controller Betty Yee (D)[21]
- San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee[21]
- Assemblymember Roger Hernandez (D-48), chair of the Assembly Committee on Labor and Employment[22]
Arguments in favor
Lieutenant Governor Newsom said in announcing his support for the measure:[21]
| “ | Millions of hardworking Californians struggle every day to provide for themselves and their families because their wages have not kept up with the high cost of living in our state. California leads the country on so many issues like the environment, civil rights and public health, so it’s only appropriate that we also lead on addressing income inequality.[15] | ” |
Steve Trossman, SEIU-UHW spokesman and co-proponent of the initiative, stated:[23]
| “ | We have done extensive polling and there is very strong support among likely voters for a $15 minimum wage. The numbers are trending up. We believe that by November 2016, 15 months from now, the support for this is going to be even higher.[15] | ” |
Ed Lee, mayor of San Francisco, said:[24]
| “ | Who can live on $21,000 a year? Nobody can. People have the right to a decent wage, wherever they live in California.[15] | ” |
Sean Wherley, a SEIU-UHW spokesman, argued:[25]
| “ | This one is moving ahead, it’s farther along, it’s simpler, it benefits 3.3 million workers with no carveouts. This is the one that’s going ahead.[15] | ” |
Georgette Bradford, a member of SEIU-UHW, said:[22]
| “ | Low-wage workers are not teenagers working after school. Almost half of them are parents and one in ten are senior citizens. They are crossing guards, retail and warehouse workers, teaching assistants, cashiers, school janitors and security officers who get paid $10 to $11 dollars an hour. ... These extremely low wages keep people trapped in a cycle of poverty especially if they have families to raise. It is becoming harder and harder to survive in what is considered the richest state of our nation. Our initiative intends to change all of that.[15] | ” |
Opposition
Arguments against
Michael Saltsman, research director at the Employment Policies Institute, argued the following:[26]
| “ | Look no further than San Francisco’s restaurant industry, which has been hit hard by the $15 minimum wage that passed in November 2014 and is currently phasing in. Abbot’s Cellar, once one of the city’s top 100 restaurants, closed its doors earlier this year and cited the minimum-wage hike as a determining factor. For Source, a now-shuttered vegetarian restaurant, the increased labor costs were the “nail in its coffin." ... Labor markets in Imperial County, for example, already struggle to supply even more-experienced job-seekers with work. The unemployment rate for all employees hovers around 22 percent. Across all occupations, the median hourly wage is $13.79. Even supporters of a higher minimum wage are uncomfortable with a wage floor that’s much higher than half of the median wage, which means $15 would be economic suicide for Imperial County.[15] | ” |
Mike Der Manouel, Jr., president and CEO of the Der Manouel Insurance Group, said the following:[27]
| “ | A lot of big cities that have leaped ahead on this issue are feeling the pinch of job losses. I've never understood why people continue to push for a higher minimum wage when they know it does economic damage to the very people that they're intending to help.[15] | ” |
Campaign finance
| Total campaign contributions: | |
| Support: | $10,977,152.73 |
| Opposition: | $17,000.00 |
As of May 10, 2016, the support campaign for this initiative, backed by Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West, had more than 600 times the amount that the opposition campaign had. Both had only in-state donors listed on the Secretary of State's website.[28]
Support
The following chart shows information about the four ballot measure committees filed to support this initiative. The total contributions were current as of May 10, 2016. The total amount for expenditures listed below was current as of May 10, 2016. The top donor listed for these ballot measure committees is Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West.[28]
| Committee | Amount raised | Amount spent |
|---|---|---|
| LIFT UP CALIFORNIA WAGES, SPONSORED BY SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION, UNITED HEALTHCARE WORKERS WEST | $5,052,129.81 | $4,288,359.71 |
| LIFT UP CALIFORNIA, SPONSORED BY SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION - UNITED HEALTHCARE WORKERS WEST, A COALITION OF NON-PROFIT AND LABOR ORGANIZATIONS | $2,797,934.61 | $701,671.08 |
| FAIRNESS PROJECT, (NONPROFIT 501C.4), SPONSORED BY SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION, UNITED HEALTHCARE WORKERS WEST; THE | $331,800.00 | $331,800.00 |
| SERVICE EMPLOYEES INTERNATIONAL UNION, UNITED HEALTHCARE WORKERS WEST (NONPROFIT 501 (C)(5)) | $2,795,288.31 | $2,795,288.31 |
| Total | $10,977,152.73 | $8,117,119.10 |
Opposition
As of May 10, 2016, there was one ballot measure committee filed to oppose this initiative. The total contributions and the total expenditures listed are current as of May 10, 2016. The only monetary donor listed for this ballot measure committee is the California Restaurant Association Issues PAC.[29]
| Committee | Amount raised | Amount spent |
|---|---|---|
| CALIFORNIA CONSUMERS AGAINST HIGHER PRICES, SPONSORED BY SMALL BUSINESSES | $17,000 | $12,000 |
| Total | $17,000 | $12,000 |
Polls
- See also: Polls, 2016 ballot measures
| California "Fair Wage Act of 2016" (2016) | |||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Poll | Support | Oppose | Other | Margin of error | Sample size | ||||||||||||||
| Field Poll 6/25/2015 - 7/16/2015 | 68% | 30% | 2% | +/-2.6 | 1,555 | ||||||||||||||
| Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org. | |||||||||||||||||||
Path to the ballot
| Voting on Minimum Wage | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| Ballot Measures | |||
| By state | |||
| By year | |||
| Not on ballot | |||
|
- Steve Trossman and Arianna Jimenez submitted a letter requesting a title and summary for measure 15-0032 on May 27, 2015.[30]
- A title and summary were issued by California's attorney general on July 31, 2015.
- 365,880 valid signatures were required for qualification purposes.
- Supporters had until January 27, 2016, to collect the required signatures.
- Petitioners collected 545,671 signatures and began submitting signature petition sheets on January 19, 2016.[31][32]
- Measure 15-0032, also known as The Fair Wage Act of 2016, was certified for the ballot on March 22, 2016, after the required number of signatures was submitted to and verified by the California Secretary of State's office.[30]
- The secretary of state used a random sampling method to verify the signatures, as allowed by state law. The sampling projected that 423,236 of the submitted signatures were valid. Since this was more than 110 percent of the required number of valid signatures, the initiative was certified for the ballot without checking each signature individually.[30]
- On June 23, 2016, the initiative was withdrawn from the ballot.[1]
State profile
| Demographic data for California | ||
|---|---|---|
| California | U.S. | |
| Total population: | 38,993,940 | 316,515,021 |
| Land area (sq mi): | 155,779 | 3,531,905 |
| Race and ethnicity** | ||
| White: | 61.8% | 73.6% |
| Black/African American: | 5.9% | 12.6% |
| Asian: | 13.7% | 5.1% |
| Native American: | 0.7% | 0.8% |
| Pacific Islander: | 0.4% | 0.2% |
| Two or more: | 4.5% | 3% |
| Hispanic/Latino: | 38.4% | 17.1% |
| Education | ||
| High school graduation rate: | 81.8% | 86.7% |
| College graduation rate: | 31.4% | 29.8% |
| Income | ||
| Median household income: | $61,818 | $53,889 |
| Persons below poverty level: | 18.2% | 11.3% |
| Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in California. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here. | ||
Presidential voting pattern
- See also: Presidential voting trends in California
California voted for the Democratic candidate in all six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.
More California coverage on Ballotpedia
- Elections in California
- United States congressional delegations from California
- Public policy in California
- Influencers in California
- California fact checks
- More...
Related measures
On the ballot in 2016
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms California Fair Wage Act Initiative 2016. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 California Secretary of State, "Initiatives and Referenda Failed to Qualify," accessed June 24, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Attorney General's Office, "Initiative 15-0032," accessed December 1, 2015
- ↑ San Francisco Examiner, "Two unions battle for $15 hourly minimum wage in California," November 3, 2015
- ↑ Sacramento Business Journal, "$15 minimum-wage measure qualifies for November ballot," March 23, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Monterey Herald, "California union halts minimum wage drive with law pending," April 1, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Los Angeles Times, "Deal reached to boost California's minimum wage to $15, avoiding ballot box battle," March 26, 2016
- ↑ Davis Vanguard, "Minimum Wage Hike Passes Legislature, Awaits Governor’s Signature," April 1, 2016
- ↑ Open States, "California Senate Bill 3," accessed April 1, 2016
- ↑ Sacramento Business Journal, "Statewide $15 minimum wage initiative approved for November ballot," March 23, 2016
- ↑ Sacramento Business Journal, "$15 minimum-wage measure qualifies for November ballot," March 23, 2016
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 KCRA News 3, "Deal reached to take California minimum wage to $15 an hour," March 27, 2016
- ↑ ABC News 4, "California Enacts Highest Statewide Minimum Wage in U.S.," April 4, 2016
- ↑ SEIU-UHW, "Encouraging Withdrawal of a $15 Minimum Wage in Lieu of Legislation that Lifts Up Millions of California Workers RESOLUTION 21-16," accessed June 23, 2016
- ↑ SEIU-UHW, "Press Release Archive," accessed June 23, 2016
- ↑ 15.00 15.01 15.02 15.03 15.04 15.05 15.06 15.07 15.08 15.09 15.10 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Attorney General's Office, "Fiscal Impact Estimate Report," accessed December 1, 2015
- ↑ Attorney General's Office, "RE: Request for Circulating Title and Summary; Signed Certifications; The Fair Wage Act of 2016," May 27, 2015
- ↑ KQED, "Union Group Submits 2016 Initiative to Boost California’s Minimum Wage," April 27, 2015
- ↑ SEIU-UHW, "Home," accessed March 24, 2016
- ↑ Silicon Valley Business Journall, "Gavin Newsom endorses state minimum wage initiative as California SEIU files rival measure," November 3, 2015
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 21.2 The Sacramento Bee, "SEIU starts competing effort to put minimum wage on California ballot," November 3, 2015
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Vida en el valle, "Thousands of Californians are hoping to raise the state’s minimum wage to $15 by 2021," January 26, 2016
- ↑ 89.3 KPCC, "California minimum wage initiative cleared for signatures," August 3, 2015
- ↑ SFGate, "Backers of $15 minimum wage submit signatures to get on ballot," January 19, 2016
- ↑ Patch, "Proposed Measure Would Raise California's Minimum Wage to $15 by 2021," January 21, 2016
- ↑ The Orange County Register, "Newsom should spare California a minimum wage disaster," December 18, 2015
- ↑ ABC 30, "BALLOT PUSH FOR MINIMUM WAGE BOOST," January 19, 2016
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 California Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance: MINIMUM WAGE. INCREASES AND FUTURE ADJUSTMENTS. INITIATIVE STATUTE.," accessed June 3, 2016
- ↑ California Secretary of State, "Campaign Finance: CALIFORNIA CONSUMERS AGAINST HIGHER PRICES, SPONSORED BY SMALL BUSINESSES," accessed June 3, 2016
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 California Secretary of State, "November 2016 Eligible Statewide Ballot Measures," accessed March 24, 2016
- ↑ The Mercury News, "Union submits signatures for $15 California minimum wage," January 19, 2016
- ↑ CBS Sacramento, "Initiative To Raise California’s Minimum Wage To $15 An Hour Gathers 600,000 Signatures," January 19, 2016
| |||||||||||
 |
State of California Sacramento (capital) |
|---|---|
| Elections |
What's on my ballot? | Elections in 2024 | How to vote | How to run for office | Ballot measures |
| Government |
Who represents me? | U.S. President | U.S. Congress | Federal courts | State executives | State legislature | State and local courts | Counties | Cities | School districts | Public policy |
