$15 minimum wage proposal qualifies for November ballot in Tacoma

TACOMA -- The Pierce County auditor's staff notified the city of Tacoma on Friday that an initiative to raise the minimum wage in the city to $15 an hour has qualified for the November ballot.

The News Tribune of Tacoma said the auditor’s staff verified that petitions submitted by the 15 Now Tacoma group contained 3,231 valid signatures of registered Tacoma voters, surpassing the 3,160-signature requirement.

The City Council can approve Proposition 1 as written or forward it to voters, the newspaper said, adding that the council cannot modify the proposal.

According to the proposed 15 Now measure in Tacoma, businesses making gross revenues of $300,000 per year or more would have to pay a $15 minimum wage with no phase-in period or exceptions based on a business’s number of employees.

The cities of Seattle and SeaTac have already moved to raise the minimum wage there to $15 an hour.