Senate arbiter: Nix wage hike in relief bill

WASHINGTON — The Senate parliamentarian has dealt a potentially lethal blow to Democrats’ drive to hike the federal minimum wage, deciding that the cherished progressive goal must fall from a massive COVID-19 relief bill the party is trying to speed through Congress, Democratic Senate aides said Thursday.

The finding by Elizabeth MacDonough, the chamber’s nonpartisan arbiter of its rules, comes as Democrats prepare for House approval Friday of an initial version of the $1.9 trillion package that still includes the minimum wage boost.

Democrats had been anxiously awaiting Ms. MacDonough’s decision, but their next steps are not clear. Her ruling pertains only to the Senate, where the legislation will move forward under complex rules that prohibit certain items that don’t have a particular impact on the budget. Ms. MacDonough determined that the minimum wage increase did not pass that test — an outcome that had been predicted by a number of Democrats, including President Joe Biden himself.

The Senate aides confirmed the parliamentarian’s decision to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because it hadn’t yet been released.

Progressives seeking to maximize Democratic control of the White House and Congress have wanted party leaders to push aggressively on the issue. The proposal would gradually raise the federal minimum wage to $15 over five years, well over the $7.25 in effect since 2009.

But Democratic Sens. Joe Manchin of West Virginia and Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona have voiced opposition to

including the minimum wage hike in the relief bill, and other moderates have expressed concerns too.

That suggests Democrats could well lack the strength they need for it to survive. Democrats control the 50-50 Senate with Vice President Kamala Harris’ tiebreaking vote and can’t lose any of their senators to prevail. Republicans solidly oppose the hike to $15.

One possibility is trying to find compromise at a lower level — Mr. Manchin has endorsed $11 an hour — and try another way to get it in the bill. For example,

Democrats could pass Mr. Biden’s relief bill through the Senate without the minimum wage included, then try to put a different version of it back in and convince the parliamentarian it should stay.

Several liberal Senate Democrats said Thursday they need to do whatever it takes to raise the minimum wage — up to and including eliminating the filibuster, the 60-vote rule that gives the minority party enormous sway in the Senate. (Mr. Manchin and Ms. Sinema say they oppose that too.)

Democrats have said they could still pursue a minimum wage boost in free -standing legislation or attach it to legislation expected later this year that is to be aimed at a massive infrastructure program, another priority of Mr. Biden.

But they’d still face the challenge of garnering 60 Senate votes, a hurdle that has upended Democratic attempts to boost the minimum wage for over a decade.

By early Thursday, not one Republican in either chamber had pledged to back the legislation. GOP leaders attacked the package as a wasteful job killer that does too little to reopen schools or businesses shuttered for the pandemic.

“I haven’t seen a Republican yet that’s found something in there that they agree with,” said House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif.

While Mr. Biden supports the increase to $15, the White House seemed to signal reluctance to pursue one rarely used option.

Democrats could choose to bust through decades of Senate precedent, ignore the parliamentarian’s view and keep the minimum wage provision in the bill with their 51 votes. But moves like that are anathema to many Senate traditionalists like Mr. Biden, a 36-year veteran of the chamber, and would invite tit-for-tat retaliation by Republicans.

White House chief of staff Ron Klain on Wednesday distanced the administration from the possibility of bypassing the Senate’s usual procedures.

“Certainly, that’s not something we would do,” he said. “We’re going to honor the rules of the Senate and work within that system to get this bill passed.”

Republicans solidly oppose the $15 minimum wage target as an expense that would hurt businesses and cost jobs. They also oppose the overall relief bill, saying it’s too expensive and not targeted enough.

The relief bill is Mr. Biden’s first legislative priority. It is aimed at combating a yearlong pandemic that’s stalled much of the economy, killed half a million Americans and reshaped the daily lives of virtually everyone.

The $1.9 trillion legislation would provide millions of people with $1,400 direct payments. It contains billions of dollars for vaccines and COVID-19 testing, schools, state and local governments, the ailing restaurant and airline industries, and emergency jobless benefits. It would also provide tax breaks to lower earners and families