News outlets are continuing to report on our recent findings surrounding a possible minimum wage increase in St. Paul.
Both the Pioneer Press and Star Tribune have taken a look at our scoping study. Today, MinnPost looks at the proposed increase, and our report:
Citing a recent report by the Metropolitan Council, the head of the Citizens League told council members that St. Paul has the region’s highest percentage of people living in poverty at 40.8 percent. The same report found that the number of Census tracts in the city identified as being areas of concentrated poverty increased from 32 in 2006-2010 to 38 in 2011-2015. Other calculations show that living costs are higher in Ramsey County than in the state, and council members already are wrestling with an ongoing shortage of affordable housing — especially for those at the lowest incomes. All make the elected officials sensitive to calls for higher wages and all were the starting points for the Citizens League study of the potential impacts as well as the likely concerns posed by a higher wage within city limits.
> Click here for our project page, which includes the final report