Delaware General Assembly passes $15 minimum wage, sends bill to Gov. John Carney

Delaware's minimum wage is expected to go to $15 an hour by 2025 after being passed late Thursday by the General Assembly.

The House voted 26-15 along party lines to pass Senate Bill 15 by Sen. Jack Walsh, D-Stanton. The Senate passed the bill along party lines in March, and now the bill heads to Gov. John Carney for his signature.

The bill would gradually raise the hourly minimum wage from its current rate of $9.25 to $15 by 2025.

The minimum wage would increase by more than $1 each year:

• $10.50 by 2022
• $11.75 by 2023
• $13.25 by 2024
• $15 by 2025

The bill needed only 22 of the 41 House lawmakers to vote yes. Twenty-six of them are Democrats.

House Majority Leader Valerie Longhurst, D-Bear, told Delaware Online/The News Journal last week that the Democratic-controlled chamber was likely to pass the bill.

"The industry is dictating that anyway, right now," Longhurst said then. "We've passed minimum wage bills before. This is probably the most aggressive one."

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House lawmakers considered seven amendments to the bill, six of which were sponsored by Republicans. Democrats voted down all of them.

Some of those amendments would have delayed the minimum wage increase for some or all businesses. Others would have allowed small businesses or nonprofits to pay a lower rate, while some amendments would have required the state to study and report the higher wage's impact on the economy.

One Democrat — freshman Rep. Rae Moore, D-Middletown — sponsored an amendment to delay the wage increase by one year for businesses with fewer than 20 employees. She was the only Democrat to vote for it.

Moore won her seat in the November election thanks to support from progressive organizations such as the Delaware Working Families Party.

While they did endorse Moore during the election, the Delaware Working Families Party does not support the amendment, according to a spokeswoman.

During Thursday's debate, Republicans argued that the wage increase would hurt businesses — especially the ones that have already suffered financial loss during the pandemic. Some also raised concerns about how much the increase would cost the state.

"This is the wrong time," said Rep. Ron Gray, R-Selbyville.

Democrats argue that workers have also suffered from the pandemic and that an increased minimum wage is long overdue.

According to an official financial analysis, it would cost the state an extra $3.7 million per year by 2024 to increase wages for low-paid public employees. The analysis does not project costs for 2025 when the minimum wage would reach $15.

Carney is expected to sign the bill, according to his spokesman Jonathan Starkey.

"The Governor supports a $15 minimum wage and looks forward to a bill getting to his desk," Starkey said.

A week ago, the General Assembly passed a bill — almost entirely along party lines — to erase a 3-year-old law that lets businesses pay young and new workers 50 cents per hour less than the minimum wage. Carney has yet to sign it.

Lawmakers are in session until June 30. After that, they go on a six-month break.

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Sarah Gamard covers government and politics for Delaware Online/The News Journal. Reach her at (302) 324-2281 or sgamard@delawareonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahGamard.