CITY COUNCIL
CITY OF CHICAGO
COUNCIL CHAMBER
SECOND FLOOR, CITY HALL
TELEPHONE 312-744-6800
November 19, 2014 Gov. Pat Quinn
House Speaker Michael Madigan Senate President John Cullerton
Dear Gov. Quinn, Speaker Madigan and President Cullerton:
Illinois voters spoke out in force Nov. 4. They demanded that legislators raise the minimum wage in our state and we, the undersigned, are committed to enacting the will of the people. By an overwhelming majority, in every part of our state - from dense Chicago to the Quad Cities to the farmland in Rockford, voters told the Legislature to raise the minimum wage.
Our role as elected leaders is to represent the unique needs of our constituents. We do not support any measure that would curtail our ability to represent the families in our districts by Springfield. Media reports are surfacing about an alternative proposal related to the minimum wage. This proposal would preempt local home rule governments from raising the minimum wage above the state level. This is unacceptable.
There is zero ambiguity in the election results. The minimum wage is too low in Illinois and voters want it raised. They are not asking statehouse leaders to play games. The "preemption" proposal floating around Springfield is a dirty deal designed to appease corporations that pay employees minimum wage. It will hurt Illinois families and keep working families in poverty and dependent on government assistance.
Each of us must be responsive to the needs of our constituents. We will not allow Chicagoans, where the cost of living is the highest in the state, to get a raw deal that makes raising a family untenable in our city. We oppose this proposal and will work to defeat it and raise the minimum wage in our state and in our city.
Sincerely,
Members of the Chicago City Council