FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Date: April 17, 2019 Contact: Kristie Winslow, Communications Coordinator Phone: (208) 332-2818

Boise, Idaho – Idaho Secretary of State Lawerence Denney announced proponents of a new initiative were cleared to begin collecting petition signatures.

The initiative may be circulated for signatures now that the official language is complete, and the Attorney General has forwarded the legal titles to the Secretary of State. The Attorney General’s official short and long ballot titles are as follows:

An initiative amending minimum wage law by increasing the general minimum wage and minimum wage of tipped employees. An initiative amending chapter 15, title 44, Idaho Code; increasing minimum wage rate applicable to most non-exempt employees annually for four (4) consecutive years; establishing formula for subsequent years to annually adjust minimum wage rate in direct proportion to increases in specified federal consumer price index; increasing minimum wage amount of direct wages paid to tipped employees annually for four (4) consecutive years; providing on January 1 of each year following the fourth year minimum wage for tipped employees shall not be less than three dollars and ninety cents ($3.90) less than general minimum wage; and repealing subsection (3) of section 44-1502, Idaho Code, removing allowance for employers to pay a minimum wage rate of four dollars and twenty-five cents ($4.25) to employees under age of twenty (20) for a period of ninety (90) days after initially employed.

The Secretary of State’s tracking number for this measure is I1901.

The proponents of the measure must collect signatures of 50,365 registered voters (six percent of the qualified electors at the time of the November 2018 general election) in order to qualify it for the ballot. These signatures are also required to be distributed across at least 18 legislative districts with at least six percent of registered voters from each district. The proponents have until the April 30, 2020, deadline to circulate petitions for the measure, and signatures must be submitted to county elections officials no later than May 1, 2020.

The proponents can be reached by emailing Rod Couch at [email protected].

ABOUT LAWERENCE DENNEY

Lawerence Denney has served the people of Idaho since 1990. His public service began as a representative in District 13 and, following redistricting, he became a representative in District 9 until 2014. During that time, Denney served two terms as Majority Leader and three terms as Speaker of the House before successfully running for state office. He is currently in the first year of his second term as Idaho’s Secretary of State.