The House has voted 55-14 along party lines in favor of HB 463, the minimum wage pre-emption law, which bans local ballot measures or ordinances to increase the minimum wage; Idaho’s minimum wage is $7.25 per hour. Rep. Luke Malek, R-Coeur d’Alene, the bill’s lead sponsor, said the bill just clarifies a currently unclear state law. “This bill does not open up Idaho for a huge policy shift on the issue of minimum wage,” Malek told the House.

Opponents of the bill disagreed. “I think there’s a lot more to this than just saying it’s clarification of the way things are. This bill would put into law some significant and permanent changes in how government interacts with its citizens,” said House Minority Leader John Rusche, D-Lewiston. “I believe there are local needs that should be addressed with local remedies.” So far, just one Idaho city, McCall, has had a local ballot measure to raise the minimum wage; it failed.

All 14 House Democrats voted against the bill; 55 Republicans voted in favor and one was absent.

House Assistant Majority Leader Brent Crane, R-Nampa, said, “I’m actually very excited that we’re having the opportunity today to debate what I think is a very important topic in Idaho, and that is the issue of minimum wage.” He said, “Every time you raise the minimum wage, all you do is you raise the cost of goods sold. … This bill, for employers, provides predictability.”

Rep. Ron Nate, R-Rexburg, told the House, “Empirical evidence supports eliminating minimum wage laws.” He said, “Idaho has more to lose from minimum wage increases than other states,” because the state has a higher percentage of minimum-wage earners. “It attacks the personal freedoms of people wishing to enter contracts voluntarily on their own. … A minimum wage is effectively a tax on workers.”

Rep. John Gannon, D-Boise, noted that the Legislature has refused this year to consider bills to raise Idaho’s minimum wage on a statewide basis. He also pointed out that Idaho’s existing statewide minimum wage law provides for a lower, $4.20 per hour wage for people under age 20 in their first three months on the job.

Malek said, “This bill does not increase or decrease the minimum wage. It clarifies the appropriate structure of government. … Local government can be just as tyrannical as the oft-vilifed federal government. Power can be abused at any level, and when it comes to minimum wage, a patchwork approach is bad policy.”

HB 463, which has 15 co-sponsors, all Republicans, now moves to the Senate side. It needs passage there and the governor’s signature to become law.