Minimum wage question faces Colorado voters in November

Tracy du Charme owns Color Me Mine in the Chapel Hills Mall.

She hopes voters will back Amendment 70, a measure this November that would vault Colorado’s minimum wage by more than 40 percent.

“The one thing that’s going to help a local shop like mine is a strong local economy and people earning minimum wage are going to spend that money locally,” du Charme said.

Currently, Colorado’s minimum wage is $8.31. If Amendment 70 passes, it would go up to $12 by 2020.

“People are going to start dropping services because they can’t afford to pay,” Cesar Quinones, an employee with a small IT development firm in Colorado Springs said. “Everybody gets affected and unemployment is high. The little shop with two or three people, well, they’re going to have to make do with two because they can’t afford to pay the third person.”

Du Charme is confident a “Yes” vote will drive more people to her store.

“If they have a little more spending money to spend on business that’s great because I don’t sell an essential service,” she said. “I sell an entertainment, an experience and it’s fun to do but you have to have disposable income to do it.”

Prior to Amendment 70 this fall, Colorado voters last saw a minimum wage question on the statewide ballot in 2006.

Tracy du Charme owns Color Me Mine in the Chapel Hills Mall.

She hopes voters will back Amendment 70, a measure this November that would vault Colorado’s minimum wage by more than 40 percent.

“The one thing that’s going to help a local shop like mine is a strong local economy and people earning minimum wage are going to spend that money locally,” du Charme said.

Currently, Colorado’s minimum wage is $8.31. If Amendment 70 passes, it would go up to $12 by 2020.

“People are going to start dropping services because they can’t afford to pay,” Cesar Quinones, an employee with a small IT development firm in Colorado Springs said. “Everybody gets affected and unemployment is high. The little shop with two or three people, well, they’re going to have to make do with two because they can’t afford to pay the third person.”

du Charme is confident a “Yes” vote will drive more people to her store.

If they have a little more spending money to spend on business that’s great because I don’t sell an essential service,” she said. “I sell an entertainment, an experience and it’s fun to do but you have to have disposable income to do it.”

Prior to Amendment 70 this fall, Colorado voters last saw a minimum wage question on the statewide ballot in 2006.