Robert L. Ehrlich, Jr. and others letter to George W. Bush, March 30, 2001

Congress of tfje ©tuteO States 2HaSf)ington, SC 20515 March 30, 2001 The Honorable George W. Bush President of the United States The White House 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue Washington, DC 20500 Dear President Bush: In recognition of your strong support for the State Flexibility approach to the national minimum wage, we are writing to express our commitment to securing its inclusion in any minimum wage bill that reaches your desk. Through your leadership, we feel the time is right for this pro-worker, pro-employer, and pro¬ community policy. Like you, we trust our governors and state legislators to address the needs of the most vulnerable citizens in our various states with compassion and competence. The success of welfare reforms across the country proves that the best ideas do not necessarily come out of Washington. Often, flexibility, rather than federal mandates, is the best approach. The State Flexibility approach that you have espoused serves the best interests of working people who need their first jobs and the employers that hire them. It recognizes that economic conditions vary from state-to-state, and even county-by-county. The inflexibility of the Fair Labor Standards Act leaves no room for governors and state legislators to develop and implement statewide wage policies that address the needs of welfare reform and economic development. Your policy would remedy this shortcoming in current law and extend needed authority to the states to improve the economic wellbeing of their citizens and communities. We share your policy objective on this important issue and stand ready to work for its implementation. Sincerely,