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Gov. Culver signs bill into law raising minimum wage

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By Todd Dorman | Friday, January 26, 2007 |

DES MOINES — A day after the Legislature wrapped it up, Democratic Gov. Chet Culver signed legislation raising Iowa’s minimum wage Thursday.

“This is quite a birthday present,” said Culver, who turned 41 on Thursday and signed his first bill into law as governor. “This is a historic occasion.”

Culver signed a bill raising Iowa’s current $5.15-per-hour minimum wage to $6.20 on April 1 and to $7.25 on Jan. 1, 2008. Lawmakers pushed the measure through the Democratically controlled House and Senate by wide margins this week with votes from both political parties.

Backers contend Culver’s signature will deliver a raise to nearly 260,000 Iowans, including 128,000 who currently earn between $5.15 and $7.25. Others who earn just more than $7.25 would see a raise as businesses adjust pay levels to make room for the new higher wage floor.

One of those Iowans, Tonya Gibson of Des Moines, stood behind Culver as he signed the bill. The mother of five is back in school trying to earn a GED after working at several fast-food jobs.

“Thank God. It’s about time,” Gibson said after the bill-signing. “I think it’s great. It will help out a lot.”

Earners working minimum wage year-round would see their annual income rise by $4,300 under the bill, Culver said.

Culver signed the bill at the bottom of a grand staircase in the Capitol rotunda. A crowd of Democratic lawmakers gathered on the stairs to cheer, witness the signing and sing “Happy Birthday” to Culver.

“I think it will have a pretty tremendous impact in my district,” said Rep. Elesha Gayman, D-Davenport, a freshman who campaigned last fall on the issue. “Sometimes, they’re the hardest jobs, and I think they deserve a raise today.”

Labor unions and other Democratic-allied interest groups have lobbied for years for a higher wage floor. It’s been nine years since Iowa raised its minimum wage, and Democrats argued that its purchasing power has eroded over those years.

“It’s long overdue,” said Danny Homan, Iowa president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, or AFSCME, the largest union representing government employees. “To ask people to work for $5.15 is unconscionable.

“This raise doesn’t take them where they should be, but it’s a start in the right direction.”

Todd Dorman can be reached at (515) 243-0138 or at todd.dorman@lee.net.