Center for American Progress Ignores CBO in Flawed New Report

Just two weeks ago, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office released a report on President Obama’s $10.10 minimum wage proposal. Most of the press coverage rightly focused on the report’s estimate that 500,000 jobs would be lost if a $10.10 minimum wage became a reality.

But the CBO also reported that the $10.10 hike would have little or no net effect on federal deficits. While spending on programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) would fall, other federal spending due to people who lost their jobs or businesses that took a hit would rise.

Enter the left-wing Center for American Progress (CAP), which today released a report of its own. Co-authored by far-left researcher Michael Reich, the CAP report claims that a $10.10 minimum wage would “reduce taxpayer costs” to the tune of $46 billion by reducing SNAP spending.

Either CAP didn’t read the CBO report, or it’s being willfully ignorant of the results. By narrowly focusing on the effect of a wage hike on SNAP spending, CAP ignores the CBO’s conclusion that any reductions in spending will be offset by other increases in spending. In other words, taxpayers aren’t saving anything by hiking the minimum wage.

The CBO report was devastating for proponents of a higher minimum wage, and this new report shows just how low they’ll sink to keep defending an indefensible policy.