Danny Conservative: Big push by lawmakers to increase Maryland’s minimum wage — again The “National Conversation” about “Affordability” CBS Baltimore WJZ” (Article and Response)

The Living Wage For All Act would increase the pay by 2030. It would also eliminate the tip credit starting in 2031 and automatically increase wages with inflation starting in 2033.

The bill’s wage schedule shows a 67% increase in the span of a few years:

$17 — Jan. 1, 2027
$20 — Jan. 1, 2028
$22.50 — Jan. 1, 2029
$25 — Jan.1, 2030.
Democrats call for a minimum wage increase
Democrat and District 19 Delegate Vaughn Stewart is one of the sponsors who spoke at a Thursday committee meeting in support of the bill.

“A wage floor should be a floor,” he said. “Employers must pay the full minimum wage directly, and so tips remain on top of whatever the minimum wage is, and that’s phased in, again, gradually over an almost decade-long time horizon.”

Steward said he believes it would help with inflation.

“What this bill does is it puts the idea of a living wage for all workers, with no exceptions, on the ballot in November of this year,” he said.

“What this bill does is it puts the idea of a living wage for all workers, with no exceptions, on the ballot in November of this year,” he said.

Small businesses could be impacted, critics say
Jeremy Schwartz, professor of economics at Loyola University, said this is a complex issue, and it’s important to look at all sides.

“What I hope they would consider is that trade off, that this is an opportunity to make a lot of households in Maryland, a lot of families better off, but we need to be wary of the possible employment effects,” Schwartz said.

Critics believe if the bill is enacted, the effects may hit small businesses hard.

“Maryland is, you know, geographically, a very thin state with lots of other jurisdictions around it that businesses could potentially move to for lower labor costs,” Schwartz explained. “But this is a lever that we’ve already pulled, and it’s really a 20th-century, early 20th-century lever, when they’re much more creative policy options at the governor’s disposal that I think he might be more interested in.

Now since November, both Governor Spanburger’s plans for Virginia & Mayor Mamdani’s plans for New York City are being criticized for adding more costs to businesses and citizens of their respective State & City.

Now here in Maryland the Moore Administration is on the “Affordability” bandwagon with their rhetoric. However, is that a “reality”?…

Since the Moore Administration has come to power  in January of 2023, it squandered $5 Billion Dollars in the reserves to $3 Billion Dollars in the hole as of January 8th 2025. The Administration has “levied” $2 Billion Dollars of Tax and Fee Increases on businesses and citizens, with more coming in the form of property tax increases in 2026, and through “heavy regulations” has driven up energy rates around the State as much as 1000 percent, highest in the Country.

In addition has added more regulations to building new homes.With all of this in 2026  the State was ranked the “2nd worst State” to open a business in by Wallethub….

Maryland went to $15 dollars an hour minimum wage officially in 2024, and now 2 years later the Democrats in the Legislature are saying it needs to go to $25 dollars, without waiting to see the impact of $15 an hour for a few years…

Since 2024 Maryland’s Businesses and citizens have seen costs and price increases on most goods and services, and business leaders in the State are saying the $25 dollar minimum wage will lead to job losses, and ultimately lead to more cost increases.

Yeah the Democrats are saying “Affordability”with their rhetoric, however their actions appear to be saying something else….