Governor Schwarzenegger has proposed a one dollar increase in the minimum wage over two years  and Republican Senator Abel Maldonado is carrying the bill.  The measure does not include automatic cost-of-living increases – commonly called indexing.  Though he has previously supported legislation that included such increases – which was vetoed by Schwarzenegger.  Maldonado says this is a good compromise.

“Governor Schwarzenegger has made it very clear to me that there will be no indexing – if there is a bill with indexing in it, he will veto it.”

But such automatic increases are key for many Democrats, says Senator Gilbert Cedillo, who has authored a one-dollar minimum wage increase that includes indexing.  He says he’s willing to work with the business industry to make the increases more acceptable.

"What are the things that we can do to help businesses deal with the cost of doing business in California but not having working families bear the burden of that cost.”

Democratic Assemblywoman Sally Lieber is also once again authoring minimum wage legislation that includes indexing.