Cotton, Romney introduce bill pairing minimum wage increase with immigration employment eligibility

Republican Sens. Tom Cotton (Ark.) and Mitt Romney (Utah) announced on Tuesday that they will be introducing a bill that would increase the minimum wage while also requiring employers to verify the employment eligibility of immigrant workers.

“Millions of Americans are struggling to make ends meet. I’m introducing a bill with @SenTomCotton that would increase the minimum wage while ensuring businesses cannot hire illegal immigrants. We must protect American workers,” Romney tweeted.

Millions of Americans are struggling to make ends meet. I’m introducing a bill with @SenTomCotton that would increase the minimum wage while ensuring businesses cannot hire illegal immigrants. We must protect American workers.

— Senator Mitt Romney (@SenatorRomney) February 16, 2021

“Congress hasn’t raised the minimum wage in more than a decade, leaving many Americans behind,” Romney continued. “Our proposal gradually raises the minimum wage without costing jobs, setting it to increase automatically with inflation, and requires employers to verify the legal status of workers.”

Cotton added in a tweet that the wage increase in his and Romney’s bill would not go into effect until “after the pandemic has ended.” The bill would also include “protection for small businesses,” according to Cotton.

Our proposal gradually raises the minimum wage without costing jobs and then sets it to increase automatically with inflation.

This minimum-wage increase will go into effect after the pandemic has ended and include protections for small businesses.

— Tom Cotton (@SenTomCotton) February 16, 2021

Specific details on the bill have yet to be unveiled. Spokespeople for both senators told The Hill that the bill would be rolling out next week.

Calls for the minimum wage to be raised to $15 an hour have grown as President Biden assumed office in January amid a continued economic crisis brought on by the coronavirus pandemic. Increasing the minimum wage had been one of Biden’s campaign promises.

Biden recently acknowledged that a $15 minimum wage hike would likely not pass as part of his proposed $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, though he said he would include a wage increase in a separate piece of legislation.

Democratic lawmakers have pushed to raise the minimum to $15 an hour gradually by 2025 before linking it to inflation, more than doubling it from $7.25 where it has stood since 2009.

Senate Budget Committee Chairman Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has shot down reports that the minimum wage increase will be left behind, insisting that it will be passed through budget reconciliation.

— Updated 2/22/2021 to reflect clarification of the bill’s intent.