WASHINGTON – Joint Economic Committee (JEC) Democrat Ranking Member Carolyn Maloney (D-N.Y.) issued the following statement today on the Raise the Wage Act, for which she is an original co-sponsor. The measure, introduced today in the United States House of Representatives by Rep. Bobby Scott (D-Va.) would raise the minimum wage to $12 an hour by 2020.

“For decades, the real value of the minimum wage has been shrinking because of inflation. The minimum wage is worth LESS today than it was almost 50 years ago. And it’s not pennies – it is worth $3.64 cents less per hour in today’s dollars.

"That's why it is so important to pass the Raise the Wage Act.

“In 1968, the annual income of a full-time minimum wage worker, measured in today’s dollars, was $22,600 -- it’s a huge stretch for a family to survive even on that amount. But the annual income of a full-time minimum wage worker has dropped to $15,080. It is impossible to support a family on that salary. In a country as wealthy as ours, that’s an embarrassment.

“Polling clearly shows that the American people solidly support an increase in the minimum wage. I urge my colleagues in Congress to listen and to pass the bill.