Flagstaff folks declare independence...from the state

With nary a gunshot fired and very little media fanfare a group of folks in Flagstaff (and their lawyers) staged a revolution against the state of Arizona -- and won.

"It was a very good day for local communities," said attorney Shawn Aiken. Along with cou-counsel Mik Jordahl, Aiken represented the Flagstaff Living Wage Coalition in a lawsuit against the state.

They decided to push back against a state law that prevented any government entity except the Legislature from raising the minimum wage. They argued that the Legislature doesn't have the power to impose such a rule. But that's how Arizona's Republican-controlled Legislature operates.

The lawmakers whine about states' rights. They demand autonomy. They rail against the federal government for imposing oppressive rules on states, then they turn around and impose what oppressive rules on counties and cities in the state.

In 2006, Arizona voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 202, raising Arizona's minimum wage from $5.15 an hour to $6.75.The proposition said that while basic wages in the state could not be lower, the Legislature, a county, a city or a town could enact a law providing for a higher minimum wage.

State lawmakers did not like that idea, so they decided to stiff Arizona's working stiffs. They passed a law in 2013 saying that only the Legislature could raise the minimum wage.

So the Flagstaff folks sued.

Earlier this week, Flagstaff Living Wage Coalition reached a settlement with the Arizona Attorney General's office that said, essentially, that the law passed by the Legislature violates the state's Voter Protection Act. Which most likely means that Flagstaff -- and every other city in the state -- can make minimum wage decisions on its own.

"Either these lawmakers just don't know about the Voter Protection Act, or worse, they simply didn't care," Aiken told me. "Maybe the most important aspect of this case is the reminder that the act does exist, and is in force."

In a press release about the case attorney Mik Jordahl added, "Arizona voters understood that local economic conditions such as Flagstaff's extremely high cost of living may require consideration of higher local minimum wages. The legislature had no right to shut down that conversation."

The settlement marks a kind of independence day for towns, and may lead groups across the state to lobby their local governments for wage increases, or perhaps even begin campaigns to put the issue on local ballots.

"The folks in Flagstaff are already working on getting something on the ballot," Aiken told me. He's also heard from attorneys representing other Arizona cities and towns.

The current minimum wage in Arizona is $8.05 per hour.

"When working people are paid a living wage that's good for a community," Aiken said. "And it should be a local community's call as to what a minimum wage should be."

It's a common sense idea that turns out to be ... revolutionary.