(CNBC) — States across the country have voted to hike their minimum wages to $15 per hour. A prominent lawyer is piling millions of dollars into a push to make Florida the next one.
Frustrated by the state government’s inaction to raise the pay floor, John Morgan has pushed to get a $15 minimum wage measure on Florida’s ballot in 2020. He has already gathered the 766,200 signatures needed to let voters decide whether to raise the wage next year. Now, the Orlando-based personal injury attorney waits on the state Supreme Court to decide if it ends up on the ballot in the battleground state.
Morgan, who alongside his wife, Ultima, runs a firm that employs more than 500 lawyers, has enjoyed ballot success in the past. He piled money into a successful 2016 ballot measure to legalize medical marijuana. He estimates he has already spent $5 million to $7 million on the minimum wage push.
