Marion holding off on minimum wage ordinance decision

MARION - Officials in Marion, Linn County's second largest community, say they are taking a wait-and-see approach on whether to go along with the county's minimum wage ordinance.

City Manager Lon Pluckhahn said officials are keeping a close eye on legislation making its way through the Iowa Statehouse - specifically House File 295, which would prohibit counties and cities from establishing certain regulations, including their own minimum wage rates. Pluckhahn said Marion officials are following the advice of City Attorney Don Hoskins, who recommended not taking a stance until the state discussion concludes.

Mayor Nicolas AbouAssaly said the council plans to follow that advice and he believes the majority of council members think minimum wage changes should be made at the state level.

'Our city attorney was pretty adamant that the county did not have the authority to pass a minimum wage ordinance,” AbouAssaly said. 'If (state legislators) don't deal with it, then I think we'll come back and figure out what to do.”

In January, Marion resident Charles Knudsen asked the council for its stance on the Linn County minimum wage ordinance, according to city documents.

Approved last year, the county's ordinance raises the minimum wage $1 a year until it reaches $10.25 in 2019.

Knudsen asked council members if there was a 'legal basis” that allowed the Linn County Board of Supervisors to raise the minimum wage in the county, and if the council agreed that the rates set by the board were 'appropriate and in the best interest” for Marion, according to documents.

AbouAssaly said he has heard from Marion residents and business owners who have said they feel comfortable with last month's minimum wage increase to $8.25 an hour in Linn County.

'But before the next increase, we would have to really consider passing something to stay or allow the next increase to take place in Marion,” he said.

Marion, which has more than 38,000 residents, according to the latest Census figures, joins Cedar Rapids in waiting to see what happens at the state level.

Cedar Rapids City Manager Jeff Pomeranz on Wednesday said the City Council has not discussed a measure to counter the county's minimum wage ordinance. Meanwhile, the Hiawatha City Council has expressed support of the county ordinance.

Without taking action, councils in Linn County municipalities effectively follow the county's minimum wage increases.

A similar ordinance in Johnson County raised the local rate to $10.10 an hour in January. Last year Wapello County approved an increase to $10.10 in 2019, while Polk County's minimum wage is to reach $10.75 an hour that same year.

Black Hawk County supervisors last month voted to create an advisory committee to study and make recommendations on a possible countywide minimum-wage ordinance.

Supervisors in those counties have leaned on their home rule authority in defending their ability to pass a local rate higher than the state and federal rate of $7.25 an hour. The ordinances have not been challenged in court.

Within those counties, some cities have decided to pass counter ordinances, which effectively opt out of the county ordinance and stick with the state and federal rule.

Meanwhile, the bill in the Iowa Legislature aims to take away city and county authority on a handful of local matters, including the minimum wage.

Proponents of the bill have applauded it as a means of unifying Iowa wage and employment rules, while some local officials declare the proposal as an attack on home rule.

- Gazette reporter B.A. Morelli contributed to this report.

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