[JURIST] Voters in Arizona, Colorado, Maine and Washington all approved minimum wage increase initiatives Tuesday, while South Dakota [Ballotpedia results] rejected a measure to lower the minimum wage. In Arizona, Proposition 206, which proposed raising minimum wage from the current $8.05 to $10 in 2017 and to $12 by 2020, passed with 59.13 percent of the vote. The also initiative created a right to paid sick time off. In Colorado, Amendment 70, which proposed raising minimum wage from the current $8.31 to $9.30 in 2017 and then increasing it by 90 cents each year until reaching $12.00 in 2020, passed with 54.41 percent of the vote. Maine’s Question 4, which raises minimum wage in the state from $7.50 to $12 by 2020 and will continue to adjust minimum wage based on fluctuations in the consumer price index, also passed with 55.53 percent of the vote. Washington’s Initiative 1433 also passed with 59.54 percent of the vote, thereby increasing minimum wage from $9.47 to $13.50 by 2020. Like Arizona, the Washington initiative will also mandate paid sick time off. South Dakota’s Referred Law 20 proposed lowering minimum wage for workers under the age of 18 from $8.50 to $7.50. It failed with 71.14 percent of vote in opposition to the initiative.

Minimum wage continues to be a controversial issue in the US. The US has not seen an increase [Reuters report] in federal minimum wage since 2009. In the absence of a federal increase, many states have responded by raising their own minimum wages. In January 14 states approved [Reuters report] increases in minimum wage from an average of $8.50 an hour to a little over $9. However, some states still, technically, have no minimum wage at all. Tennessee, Mississippi, South Carolina, Louisiana and Alabama have no state minimum wage legislation [NCSL fact sheet] beyond the $7.25 per hour mandated by the Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 [LOC backgrounder], Congress’ most recent legislative act on the minimum wage.