WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — A Wichita Democrat is sponsoring a bill that would raise the state's minimum wage by $3 dollars by 2017. Representative Jim Ward's proposal would raise the wage by $1 — to $8.25 an hour— on July 1. The wage would then go up to $1 a year during the next two years. Ward says a full-time worker should not be living below the poverty line in Kansas. Currently, a full-time worker making minimum wage earns about $15,000 a year, slightly above the poverty line for a family of two. Twenty-seven other states already have higher minimum wages than Kansas. The Wichita Eagle reports that the state last raised its minimum wage in 2009. Democrats have tried unsuccessfully since then to raise the wage. Governor Sam Brownback's office said he would not comment on potential bills.
