Update: AR House Panel Blocks Bill to Increase Minimum Wage
By: Lisa Mendenhall
Updated: March 5, 2013
A push to raise the state minimum wage suffered a setback in the Arkansas House on Tuesday.
The proposal would have raised Arkansas' state minimum wage from $6.25 an hour to $8.25.
Supporters say increasing the minimum wage will help the working poor with the rising cost of gas and groceries, but those speaking against it say it could hurt small businesses and lead to those same employees losing their job.
But the bill's sponsor from northeast Arkansas pushed hard for enough votes.
"This is not about statistics," Rep. Butch Wilkins said. "You can read statistics and listen to anything you want to hear, there's all kinds of things out there. It's what you choose to believe, with all due respect, to support the families of Arkansas."
The bill needed 11 votes to advance, but it got only five, so there will be no change in minimum wage for now.
