sa国际传媒官网网页入口

sa国际传媒官网网页入口鈥檚 City Council is looking for ways to ease high cost of living pressures on its residents.

Legislators are proposing to raise the minimum wage to $15 an hour, with subsequent annual increases tied to inflation, claiming it will address the affordability crisis. Proponents of the wage hike describe it as 鈥渕odest,鈥� but economists warn that this proposal may actually make matters even worse for residents.

A new survey of 166 U.S. economists found three-quarters of respondents oppose wage hikes of up to $15 an hour. When asked about their opposition, the economists pointed to numerous unintended consequences of raising the wage. In fact, 73% said it would decrease youth employment, 71% believed it would increase automation, and 69% said it would make it harder for Main Street businesses to operate.

Surveyed economists also raised concerns that a $15 minimum wage would force employers to hire higher-skilled workers for positions previously marketed as entry-level, making it harder for those lower-skilled and new members of the workforce to get their first job.

If fewer job opportunities and struggling local businesses aren鈥檛 enough, a majority also said they believed a $15 wage would increase the cost of living for consumers, not improve affordability as promised.

These economists aren鈥檛 unique in their opinions. Decades of economic research shows that a $1 increase in the minimum wage could lead to up to a 5.5% increase in prices. The studies have found this translates to increases in the price of everything from a gallon of milk and your occasional dinner out to spikes in rent and childcare costs.

These negative impacts would be particularly harmful to workers in the hospitality industry, so important to sa国际传媒官网网页入口鈥檚 tourism economy. Sixty-four percent of economists said a minimum wage up to $15 would reduce the number of available jobs for hospitality workers.

For real-world proof, look to Santa Fe. For years, the city has increased its minimum wage every year based on inflation 鈥� hitting the $15 hourly figure last year. The damage? The latest Bureau of Labor Statistics monthly job estimates show Santa Fe has lost roughly 4% of jobs in the hospitality industry in April 2026 compared to two years ago. That鈥檚 quadruple the rate of hospitality losses statewide at the same time.

sa国际传媒官网网页入口鈥檚 proposal would not only double down on Santa Fe鈥檚 harmful wage hike history, but also cause an increase in the tipped minimum wage for local restaurant workers every year, set at 60% of the regular minimum wage rate. Cities like Washington, D.C., and Chicago have hit pause on their own tipped wage hikes after seeing they cause job losses, reduced tips and earnings for workers, and closed local restaurants.

sa国际传媒官网网页入口 won鈥檛 be immune to these consequences, and local leaders should learn from their neighbor's missteps. Experts confirm what Santa Fe and other cities have learned the hard way: A minimum wage hike will come with costly consequences for workers and local businesses, while failing to deliver on proponents鈥� promises.

City lawmakers should proceed with caution.

Rebekah Paxton is the research director at the Employment Policies Institute.