Raise the Wage Act

Floor Speech

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Mr. ALLEN. Mr. Speaker, I think it is laughable for anybody in this House to say that the government is going to raise your wages. The government doesn't raise wages. What the government does is provide an environment for businesses to raise wages, and that is where the decision should be.

And it is laughable to me that Members of Congress actually believe that they are going to raise the wages of people in this country by this legislation. The Congressional Budget Office recently released a report saying that almost 4 million jobs could be lost if this legislation were implemented.

I remind my colleagues that we had an 8-year war on business, and, guess what. In 2016, we said that war is over. America is open for business.

With Georgia being the number one State to do business in for the past 6 years, this damaging Federal mandate would reverse all of the great work our State has done to grow jobs and the economy.

And I am telling you, we are getting it done in Georgia, but I don't want Maryland to determine what Georgia is going to do and I don't want Seattle to determine what Georgia is going to do.

As a businessman, I know that our economy is all about supply and demand, and with more job openings, then job seekers' wages are going to go up. You have to pay more to keep talent. It is supply and demand, folks.

In fact, in 2018, wages and salaries saw the largest increase in more than a decade, thanks to the economic environment led by a Republican- led Congress and President Trump that has spurred economic growth and prosperity.

The last thing we need are more one-size-fits-all Washington mandates that lead to job cuts, cut workers' hours for automation, and ultimately shut the doors of our Nation's small businesses.

Mr. Speaker, I urge a ``no'' vote on this legislation.

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