working

Articles: Bell updates Working Poor families indicators, Governor, Legislature hit 25 homers for opportunity, Fewer kids covered by health insurance, U.S. hosts 11 million undocumented immigrants, Poor families pay more for basic goods and services, Incentives increase retirement saving, Bell research cited in national report on TABOR

Using new U.S. Census Bureau data available through a multi-state project on working poor families, the Bell Policy Center is releasing a one-year update on its 2004 Opportunity Lost report.

A presentation on the Bell Policy Center's report, "Opportunity Lost: When Hard Work Isn't Enough for Colorado Families."

Colorado should raise the minimum wage from $5.15 to at least $6.85 an hour, and we should adjust the minimum wage to inflation every year thereafter. This will increase the incomes of the lowest-paid workers by $1.70 an hour, or $3,500 per year, and help them keep up with the rising costs of necessities such as food, health care, gas and housing.

Articles: Fewer Working Families Get Child Care, No Child Left Behind Law Under Fire, High School ???Unrecognized Crisis???, CO Short On Mental Health Services

Articles: CO High School Drop Out Rate Increases, Medical Costs Cited in Almost Half of All Bankruptcies in Nation, CO Trailing Other Stales in Health Insurance Coverage, CO Economy Excepted to Add Jobs in 2005, Tax Credits Boost Low-Income Working Families

If Colorado voters pass Amendment 42, which will increase the state's minimum wage, about 7 percent of the state's workers will get a raise. A new issue brief from the Bell Policy Center, "Raising Colorado's minimum wage: Who benefits?" confirms that most of these workers are adults, and many are the sole income earners in their household with kids to support.