Court Of Claims Panel To Rule On Adopt And Amend By Legislature With Minimum Wage

statecapitol-9
statecapitol-9

The fate of a higher minimum wage in Michigan and the controversial legislative practice that has effectively delayed it’s implementation was the focus of legal arguments before a three-judge Court of Appeals panel on Tuesday. Attorney John Birsh, representing the state Legislature, asked the panel to reverse a lower court order that found lawmakers should not have “adopted and amended” a ballot initiative that would have raised the minimum wage in Michigan to $13-an-hour.

“First, it’s undisputed among all the parties and the Court of Claims that the Legislature can amend an initiated law it enacts,” says Birsh. “The only question is if there is any temporal limit on that power to amend. The Legislature can do anything that the Constitution does not prohibit.”

On the other side of the legal argument was attorney Mark Brewer, who says the concept of “adopt and amend” circumvents the public’s ability to create policy and should be deemed unconstitutional. Although the Court of Appeals panel will take the case under advisement, the “adopt and amend” issue is expected to eventually go before the Michigan Supreme Court.