A study assessing how preemption affects birth outcomes – a key indicator of population health – found that state preemption of local minimum wage laws accounted for as much as 3.5% of infant deaths, resulting in more than 600 infant deaths in 2018 alone. The same study also found that the largest metro counties could reduce the infant mortality rate by 1.5 to 1.8% by increasing the minimum wage by one dollar. Read more in Wolf D, Monnat S, Montez JK. Profits protected, lives lost: The preemption tradeoff. 2020 American Public Health Association Annual Meeting. October 2020.

State preemption of local minimum wage laws prevent communities from improving health outcomes such as decreased adult body weight, increased infant birth weight, declined rates of preterm birth, declined child maltreatment reports, 3 and lower rates of suicide. Read more in Marotta, J, Greene, S. Minimum Wages: What Does the Research Tell Us about the Effectiveness of Local Action?. Urban Institute. January 2019.

State preemption of minimum wage laws prevents local governments from redressing health, social, and economic inequities. Increased minimum wages reduce wage inequality, disproportionately benefit women and individuals with lower education levels, and do not result in business closures or employment losses. Read more in Marotta, J, Greene, S. Minimum Wages: What Does the Research Tell Us about the Effectiveness of Local Action?. Urban Institute. January 2019.