AG OKs petition language on minimum wage issue

October 24, 2015 at 12:00a.m.

COLUMBUS

A group that’s hoping to place an amendment before voters to increase the minimum wage in Ohio received Republican Attorney General Mike DeWine’s OK on Friday on the petition language it submitted to his office for review.

DeWine’s certification was not an endorsement of Stand Up Ohio’s proposed Ohio Fair Wage Amendment; rather, the attorney general determined the submission included the initial 1,000 valid signatures required and a “fair and truthful” summary of the issue.

Pending the Ohio Ballot Board’s review and approval, backers could begin circulating petitions, with hopes of qualifying for the ballot next year.

Stand Up Ohio wants to increase the minimum wage in Ohio to $10 per hour as of Jan. 1, 2017, then increase it by 50 cents annually through 2021, when it would reach $12.

After that, the rate would be adjusted for inflation.

Additionally, the proposed Ohio Fair Wage Amendment calls for the phase-out of the sub-minimum wage for tipped workers in the state, setting the initial rate at $6 per hour and increasing it annually thereafter until it matches the full minimum wage.

Stand Up Ohio would need to collect more than 300,000 valid signatures from registered Ohio voters to qualify for the ballot.

Ohio voters last approved a minimum wage increase in 2006, upping it to $6.85 from $5.15, with annual increases to account for inflation.

Ohio’s current rate for employers with annual gross receipts of more than $297,000 is $8.10 per hour and $4.05 per hour for tipped employees.

Smaller companies, and teen workers age 14 or 15, have minimum wages of $7.25 per hour, the same as the current federal rate.