“Raising the minimum wage to $ 15 an hour is not incidental to the federal budget and is allowed by the reconciliation rules,” said Sanders in a statement. “The CBO found that the $ 15 minimum wage has a much greater impact on the federal budget than opening the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil prospecting and revoking individual mandate penalties – two provisions that the parliamentarian advised they did not violate Byrd’s Rule when Republicans controlled the Senate. “
“I am confident that the congressman will advise next week that we can raise the minimum wage through the reconciliation process.”
Under Byrd’s rule, the Senate cannot include “foreign matter” through the reconciliation process. Byrd’s rule considers provisions that do not alter income or expenses to be “foreign” or makes changes to income or expenses that are “purely incidental”.
Sanders’ argument is based on a report by the Congressional Budget Office that concluded that raising the minimum wage would increase the deficit by $ 54 billion over a decade.
From CBO report they found that the increase would lift nearly a million people out of poverty, but it would cost the country 1.4 million jobs.
Biden is not as confident as the Vermont Independent about the prospects of a minimum wage working through reconciliation, although he supports a minimum wage of $ 15.
“I really want it there, but it just doesn’t look like we can do it because of reconciliation,” Biden told a group of mayors and governors last week. “I will not give up. But now, we have to prepare ourselves for that not to happen ”.
Even if the congressman approves of the minimum wage increase, not all moderate Democrats support the movement via reconciliation, which could put the legislation at risk. Senator Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona said an increase in the minimum wage is not “appropriate” for reconciliation.
“It is not a budget item. And it should not be there,” Sinema told POLITICO.
Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland, a Democrat who sits on the Senate Finance Committee, agrees with Biden. Speaking on Fox News on Saturday morning, Cardin said he supported an increase in the minimum wage, but Byrd’s rule presents challenges.
“He is expressing the reality of where we are in the United States Senate,” said Cardin.