Julie Vogtman, Senior Counsel

This afternoon, Congress passed a bill to continue federal unemployment insurance (UI), along with the payroll tax cut and the “doc fix,” through the remainder of 2012. President Obama is expected to sign the bill into law later today.

In keeping with other major legislation passed by the 112^th Congress, there’s plenty not to like about this bill. But it does ensure that millions of jobless workers will not see their benefits cut off in the months ahead, keeps those benefits flowing through our economy, and preserves the basic structure of the UI program. So let’s start with the positives, shall we?

The good:

• Federal UI programs were set to expire at the beginning of March. Passing this bill in mid-February – a surprise to those of us used to the last-minute deals that have become typical in this Congress – ensures that there won’t be a lapse in UI benefits for the jobless workers and families depending on them.

Here’s a little bit of good news for the new year: more than one million low-wage workers got a raise on January 1, when the minimum wage increased in the eight states that index their minimum wage for inflation. In each of these states (Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Montana, Ohio, Oregon, Vermont, and Washington), women make up a majority of the workers who will see their paychecks increase this month.  An adjustment for inflation also increased the minimum wage in San Francisco to $10.24 per hour, making it the first large city in the country to require hourly pay above $10.

However, these jurisdictions represent the exception rather than the rule. While another 10 states, the District of Columbia, and some other localities have minimum wages that are set higher than the federal minimum wage, most of their minimum wage rates are fixed and don’t keep pace with inflation. The minimum wage is still below $9.00 an hour in every state but Washington (where it just rose to $9.04/hour). Worst of all, in more than half the states, the minimum wage remains at the federal level, which is just $7.25 an hour.

As the New York Times editorial page highlighted, it’s past time for the federal government to set a higher standard for the states. A woman working full time, year round at the current federal minimum wage will earn just $14,500 annually – that’s more than $3,000 below the federal poverty line for a mother with two children. The value of the federal minimum wage has declined over time; if it had kept pace with inflation since 1968 (when the wage was at its highest mark), it would now be $10.39 per hour. The federal minimum wage for tipped workers is lower still; since 1991, it has been set at just $2.13 an hour, providing an annual base wage of only $4,260 for tipped employees working full time, year round.