US Senate Rejects Bill to Raise Minimum Wage, Cut Estate Taxes
The U.S. Senate has rejected a Republican-sponsored bill that would have raised the U.S. minimum wage and cut inheritance taxes on multi-million dollar estates.
The measure needed 60 votes for final congressional approval, but fell four votes short, with 56 senators voting in favor of the bill and 42 against. The bill would have increased the hourly minimum wage for U.S. workers from five dollars, 15 cents an hour to seven dollars, 27 cents over the next three years.
Opposition Democrats have been calling for an increase in the minimum wage, which has not been raised since 1997. But many of them denounced the bill as a ploy to achieve a cut in the estate tax, which is a major goal for conservative Republicans.
Republicans say the estate tax - which they have dubbed the "death tax" - makes it impossible for many Americans to pass on their family-owned businesses or farms to their children.
這項(xiàng)議案需要60票才能獲得國(guó)會(huì)批準(zhǔn)，但是少了4票，56名參議員投票贊成議案，42名參議員反對(duì)。這一議案擬將在今后3年里，把美國(guó)工人的最低工資從每小時(shí)5美元15美分提高到7美元27美分。
反對(duì)派民主黨一直呼吁提高1997年以來(lái)一直沒(méi)有提高的最低工資。不過(guò)，很多民主黨人譴責(zé)議案是為實(shí)現(xiàn)保守派共和黨人的一個(gè)主要目標(biāo)-削減遺產(chǎn)稅而使用的花招。
共和黨人說(shuō)，遺產(chǎn)稅，也就是他們所稱的“死亡稅”，使得許多美國(guó)人無(wú)法將家庭買(mǎi)賣(mài)或農(nóng)場(chǎng)傳給孩子。
The U.S. Senate has rejected a Republican-sponsored bill that would have raised the U.S. minimum wage and cut inheritance taxes on multi-million dollar estates.
The measure needed 60 votes for final congressional approval, but fell four votes short, with 56 senators voting in favor of the bill and 42 against. The bill would have increased the hourly minimum wage for U.S. workers from five dollars, 15 cents an hour to seven dollars, 27 cents over the next three years.
Opposition Democrats have been calling for an increase in the minimum wage, which has not been raised since 1997. But many of them denounced the bill as a ploy to achieve a cut in the estate tax, which is a major goal for conservative Republicans.
Republicans say the estate tax - which they have dubbed the "death tax" - makes it impossible for many Americans to pass on their family-owned businesses or farms to their children.
這項(xiàng)議案需要60票才能獲得國(guó)會(huì)批準(zhǔn)，但是少了4票，56名參議員投票贊成議案，42名參議員反對(duì)。這一議案擬將在今后3年里，把美國(guó)工人的最低工資從每小時(shí)5美元15美分提高到7美元27美分。
反對(duì)派民主黨一直呼吁提高1997年以來(lái)一直沒(méi)有提高的最低工資。不過(guò)，很多民主黨人譴責(zé)議案是為實(shí)現(xiàn)保守派共和黨人的一個(gè)主要目標(biāo)-削減遺產(chǎn)稅而使用的花招。
共和黨人說(shuō)，遺產(chǎn)稅，也就是他們所稱的“死亡稅”，使得許多美國(guó)人無(wú)法將家庭買(mǎi)賣(mài)或農(nóng)場(chǎng)傳給孩子。