Madison Reporter

The new year means more money for workers in 21 states where the minimum wage increased on Jan. 1, and State Sen. Melissa Agard wants to put more money in the pockets of workers in the Badger State. 

According to the Huffington Post, California and New York both have a $15 minimum wage. In the Midwest, minimum wages include Minnesota, from $10.08 to $10.33; Michigan, from $9.65 to $9.87, Illinois, increasing from $11 to $12, and Ohio, rising from $8.80 to $9.30. Agard said it is time to raise Wisconsin’s minimum wage, which is currently $7.25, according to Wisconsin.gov. 

“Red states, blue states and purple states are increasing their minimum wage,” Agard said in a Twitter post. “This is not a partisan issue. It’s a moral issue.” 

Agard also noted in the post that “it is beyond time” to raise the state’s minimum wage, and data from bestplaces.net shows that Madison rates above the national average in its cost of living index, scoring 106 with a national average of 100. The state, however, comes in at 90.9, below the national cost of living, according to the website. 

According to Huffington Post, many of the scheduled increases are the result of cost-of-living adjustments and slated rates that are a part of local minimum wage laws. Later in 2022, the minimum wage will increase in Connecticut, Florida, Nevada and Oregon, according to Huffingtonpost.com. 

The website also noted that while some states have acted to increase the minimum wage, either through ballot issues or legislation, Congress has yet to act on the federal minimum wage, which is $7.25. That rate, according to Huffington Post, hasn’t changed in more than a decade, when the last increase was signed into law in 2009 by former President George W. Bush. The website noted that the lack of action by Congress has forced more states and municipalities to enact minimum wage increases of their own.