Hick supports wage hike, cigarette tax
Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper on Thursday threw his support behind Amendment 70, the ballot measure to lift the state’s minimum wage to $12 an hour from $8.31 by 2020.
“I’m not sure there’s another way to help move more people out of poverty than to raise the minimum wage,” Hickenlooper told Ryan Warner, host of the radio program Colorado Matters. “I think in this country, if you work 40 hours a week, and you work hard, you ought to be able to afford an apartment somewhere.”
Also during the interview, Hickenlooper said he would vote for ballot measures seeking to raise the tax on tobacco products (Amendment 72) and one that would allow the terminally ill to receive outside help in obtaining medicines to help them die (Proposition 106).
The governor, in earlier remarks on Amendment 70, expressed concerns about a disproportionate increase in the tipped minimum wage and the impact higher wages would have on struggling small businesses, especially in rural areas.
Amendment 70 would raise the state minimum wage 44 percent, but the minimum wage paid to tipped workers would rise from $5.29 to $8.98 an hour, a 70 percent increase, which many in the restaurants industry have described as disruptive.
Hickenlooper, a founder of the Wynkoop Brewing Co. and other restaurants, initially questioned why the tipped minimum wage was not raised a similar amount as the minimum wage and expressed concerns about rural areas. Opponents of the measure circulated those comments.
“After reviewing the data and talking to those close to the issue, the governor believes that the good it brings outweighs any concerns, and that this is one of the best ways to move people out of poverty,” said Kathy Green, a spokeswoman for the governor’s office.
Opponents of the measure, who thought Hickenlooper understood their concerns, were left wondering what happened.
“I liked his criticism of the measure last week better,” said Karen KristopeitParker, owner of The Fresh Fish Co. in south Denver. “If even supporters of Amendment 70 know it has many flaws, it does not belong in Colorado’s constitution.”