North Liberty goes along with wage increase for now

NORTH LIBERTY - In a move similar to that of the Iowa City Council's earlier this week, North Liberty's elected leaders indicated Thursday they'll let the first phase of Johnson County's higher minimum wage rule go into effect in the city next month.

The council - with more than a dozen residents supporting a wage increase in attendance - for a special work session on the ordinance, which will increase the local wage threshold from $7.25 to $8.20 an hour next month.

While the majority of the council said they support the first increase, several shared reservations with the county's aggressive timeline that will increase it to $10,10 by 2017, the manner in which the Board of Supervisors introduced the ordinance - with little input from local municipalities - and the lack of local data on the impact.

'Is raising the minimum wage a good idea? Yeah, that's obvious, I think,” Council Member Brian Wayson said. 'Are we doing it in the right way? I don't think so.”

Council Member Chris Hoffman was also concerned by the approach.

'My concern is the process that we took to get here, that there wasn't a broader discussion on the part of the county,” he said. 'That's behind us now so I'm OK with moving ahead with what they have laid out.”

Several members of the council said they want to see additional analysis of the full impact of the wage increase on local businesses, employees and services before future increases.

Earlier this week, the Iowa City Council made a similar move and will embark on a comprehensive analysis on the wage ordinance's impact.

As with all of Johnson County's 11 cities, North Liberty's options are to do nothing - essentially allowing the countywide ordinance to take effect within its borders - or pass a counter ordinance that sets a different minimum or sticks with the current state and federal requirement.

Solon's City Council passed an ordinance last month opting out and sticking with $7.25. Swisher is expected to discuss a similar ordinance soon. Elected officials in Coralville, the county's second largest city, have not had a formal discussion on it.

Iowa's minimum wage was last increased in 2008 from $5.15. Recent attempts in the Iowa Legislature to raise it have failed, which helped prompt Johnson County to take action itself.

The ordinance it passed will raise the wage threshold in the county in increments until it reaches $10.10, with the wage then tied to a price index.

The first phase takes effect in November when it rises by 95 cents.

With litigation or legislative action at the state or federal level a looming possibility, North Liberty council member Terry Donahue cautioned the crowd of supporters that this discussion is far from over.

'This is going to be a continuing fight, for a long time,” he said.

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