The Living Wage Ordinance -- Can We Afford It?

By Herb Katz

As a City Council member, I am often asked what is the hardest part of my job. Well, I have to say it comes down to those difficult budget decisions that affect so many and are often based on our desire to remain a concerned and caring community. We were faced with a staggering $20 million budget deficit this last year, and it meant we were forced to make difficult choices. All departments were required to reduce their budgets.

Community services, school programs, social welfare programs all will need to be evaluated and many will face further budget cuts. It is in this environment that I raise serious questions as to why we as a community would be considering an ordinance that will cost the city more funds. By some estimates, we are looking at a bill of a minimum of $3 million and it can grow to $4 to 5 million to administer and manage the ordinance and its impacts. Is this the right way to spend our limited dollars?

Do not get me wrong. I am committed to individuals being paid a fair living wage for work done, but not a discriminatory one that only affects a segment of our community. And, at what cost to others?

Some of my colleagues have come before the residents of our city and indicated that this is a sensible piece of legislation that is backed by studies and evaluation. Why not instead look at what has happened in cities where the living wage has been implemented on an even more limited scale than what is being proposed in our community. All of these have been with government contracts, none in the private sector. In communities like Suffolk County, Long Island, and in St. Louis, serious questions have been raised as to its validity, and in some cases the law itself has been repealed due to impacts on the very people it is supposed to help.

An editorial in the Wall Street Journal even suggested that, "The worst part, of course, is that in Santa Monica and places with similar requirements, it is precisely the low-wage workers the law ostensibly wishes to help who are likely to end up as collateral damage."

Much has been made about how this is a battle between the city and the luxury beachfront hotels. This is just not the case. It is far more reaching.

Companies that are diverse will be impacted by this law. Yet no one supporting this measure is talking about how they may pack their bags and move out of our community. As a council member and as a resident, this concerns me.

The same proponents of this law are the individuals who have come before the council, and so vehemently opposed how our city has become a tourist destination, and how it has lost the "mom and pop" businesses that made Santa Monica such a desirable place to live. Yet if this ordinance passes, there will be yet one more reason for the few businesses that are left to close because they cannot support the proposed wages and cannot pass the inevitable costs on to the consumer.

So I ask my colleagues and fellow residents, is this the right time to put forth such a measure and is it fair? And who will really benefit?

Yes, we as a city have invested millions to improve the beachfront and to make this a first-class community. But should we penalize a small group of businesses for that? I have heard from many business owners that say they will be forced to reduce services, cut costs and cut employees as a result of this ordinance. Is this the "improved quality of life" for all that some proponents are alluding to, with no real overall plan?

As I have said at numerous council meetings and in public debate, there are better ways to accomplish the goal of lifting people's wages while protecting the businesses that are fueling the very weak and shaky economy with which we are faced. I really believe that, as a council and a community, we can help determine a sensible way to accomplish this.

This is a state and national issue. It is not solved as a partial goal in one portion of our city aimed at hotels. Measure JJ creates an unbalanced and discriminatory ordinance. Let us help workers, not hurt them by voting no on JJ.

Herb Katz is a City Council member