Flagstaff group wins fight with state over minimum wage

A while back a group of decent hard-working people from Flagstaff decided to sue the state of Arizona over a law that prevents cities from raising the minimum wage.

The group was represented by two egal Don Quixotes, attorneys Shawn Aiken and Mik Jordahl, who argued that lawmakers couldn't impose such a restriction.

Back 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.

And, it seems, they've won.

Today, the Flagstaff Living Wage Coalition and their attorneys will announce that they've reached a settlement with the Arizona Attorney General's office 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.

Aiken said in a press release, "The people have prevailed once again. This was a clear case of our state legislature overstepping its authority and we're so pleased that Arizona voters still have the final word."

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 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 current minimum wage in Arizona is $8.05 per hour.

For his work in trying to improve wages for workers in Flagstaff (where expenses are high), as well as his work in defense of same-sex couples, Aiken has been criticized by politicians and zealots who've called him everything from a bleeding heart to a socialist.

About which he once told me, "If enforcing the will of Arizona's voters amounts to socialism, then I stand guilty as charged — and proud of the conviction."