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Santa Fe City Council approves increasing minimum wage to $17.50 an hour in 2027 Follow Carina Julig
By Carina Julig cjulig@sfnewmexican.com Nov 12, 2025
Members of the advocacy groups Chainbreaker Collective, Somos Un Pueblo Unido and Earth Care gather Wednesday evening at City Hall as they wait for the City Council to discuss a minimum wage increase. Jim Weber/The New Mexican
The crowd at City Hall burst into applause following a City Council vote late Wednesday night to increase the city's minimum wage from $15 an hour to $17.50 an hour starting in 2027. The measure, which was sponsored by outgoing Mayor Alan Webber and will be one of the last acts of his tenure in office, finally passed 5-2 after more than an hour of discussion. Councilors became bogged down in a lengthy debate over whether to change the description of the ordinance from a “living wage” to a “minimum wage,” a last-minute amendment proposed by City Councilor and Mayor-elect Michael Garcia, who won last week's election. Garcia argued the proposed increase isn't high enough to call it a living wage, saying the council should change it to minimum wage to reflect that this should only be a start for supporting workers. However, he supported the final ordinance. District 3 City Councilors Pilar Faulkner and Lee Garcia cast the two opposing votes, citing concerns about negative effects on small businesses amid a volatile economic environment.
"We are dealing with some unknowns, and I don’t want to see the people we are trying to help the most be impacted the worst," Faulkner said. City Councilor Alma Castro unsuccessfully tried for a second time to amend the measure to raise the increase to $20, with only Michael Garcia supporting her proposal. The measure is one of the last major pieces of legislation the current council will pass. Webber, who leaves office at the end of December along with two councilors, did not vote on the measure he championed due to a charter amendment approved by voters in last week's election limiting the mayor to voting only in case of a tie. Although the charter change has not yet taken effect, Webber said at the start of the meeting he would respect the will of the voters by immediately abstaining from voting.
City Councilor Alma Castro speaks during Wednesday's City Council meeting on a proposal to raise the city's minimum wage to $17.50 in 2027. Jim Weber/The New Mexican
Residents showed up in force to voice support for the proposal during a lengthy public comment section, which included many members of advocacy groups Chainbreaker Collective and Somos Un Pueblo Unido. "Sometimes my children feel like I care about work more than I care about them," Mirela Rivera said in Spanish, becoming emotional while asking the council to support the increase.
'More work to do' Introduced in September by Webber, the resolution will tie future increases to the Western region consumer price index along with local rental costs as determined by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Annual increases would be capped at 5% and the minimum wage would not decrease during a depression or economic crisis. An annual increase under the current Living Wage Ordinance is set to take effect in March, though it likely will be only around 40 cents.
City Economic Development Director Johanna Nelson said Wednesday a recent study of the labor force found 9,000 Santa Fe workers make less than $17.50 an hour. About a third of affected employees are in the food preparation and service industries, she said. City officials have described the wage increase as part of a trifecta of measures, including increased housing production and access to child care, emphasizing no one policy change by itself will be enough. "Is there a lot more work to do? Absolutely," Councilor Jamie Cassutt said. An amendment by Michael Garcia, which was approved at the committee level, will make the minimum wage increase effective Jan. 1 for the small number of city employees who make below $17.50. On Wednesday, Garcia said he voted for Castro's amendment out of an acknowledgement $17.50 an hour "is not an actual living wage" and said the city should continue to pursue pay increases for its employees.
Public support for hike A city survey on the proposal found more than 70% of the 1,400 respondents "strongly" supported the wage increase, and public comments at Wednesday's meeting included few people against the proposal.
One of the few opponents was business owner Joe Cieszinski, who ripped pages out of a phone book to demonstrate the impact he believes the proposal will have by forcing small businesses to close. “Some people that are hirable at $15 are not profitable at $17.50," he said. A survey the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce conducted of members found more than half of respondents said none of their employees make less than $20 an hour. Chamber of Commerce CEO Bridget Dixson said at Wednesday's meeting what most members are worried about is not the increase to the minimum wage but the "ripple effect" of having to give higher-earning workers raises as well.
"Those increases across all levels add up very quickly," she said, asking that any changes approved by the city "be implemented carefully."
Mayor Alan Webber listens to speakers during a City Council meeting Wednesday on to increase Santa Fe's minimum wage to $17.50 in 2027. Jim Weber/The New Mexican
Most of the commenters supported the proposal, although some said they saw it as just a start. Kenneth Archuleta, a member of the nonprofit Chainbreaker Collective, said Santa Feans are trapped in a "vicious cycle" where "rent is too high and wages are too low." Just as state lawmakers voted to fund food aid during the federal government shutdown, "This is something that local leaders can do right now" to support people in an uncertain economic environment, he said.
Former Mayor David Coss also threw his support behind the proposal, saying the support in the council room shows, "We haven't forgotten our history," referring to the original living wage ordinance passed in 2003. Coss said tying increases to rent costs is "an excellent idea" and said the carve-outs for small businesses in the initial proposal proved very problematic at the time. Coss was a city councilor when the initial proposal was approved. Paul Bustamante, who ran unsuccessfully for a council seat in District 2 in last week's election, reflected that during the COVID-19 pandemic, essential workers were called heroes. "I believe we have failed them, because they can't afford to live here," he said. While he acknowledged the proposed increase likely wouldn't be the difference between someone being able to live in Santa Fe or not, he said it would provide a much-needed safety net for low-wage workers. University of Massachusetts at Amherst professor Robert Pollin, who conducted a study of the original living wage ordinance, spoke via Zoom from the East Coast to express support for the proposal. Pollin said expectations of negative impacts from the first proposal “were not borne out” and a new study he conducted for the city of the increase under consideration showed similar findings.
“We conclude that the city can make this adjustment without significantly impacting business operations, including prices and profits” and that carve-outs for small businesses would be "unnecessary and unfair," he said.
Signs expressing support for an increase in Santa Fe's minimum wage are posted Wednesday outside City Hall in advance of a City Council meeting. Carina Julig/The New Mexican
Faulkner and Lee Garcia attempted to amend the proposal in committee to exempt businesses with fewer than 15 employees, saying they had concerns about the impact to small businesses on the south side; Faulkner said she would have supported the final proposal if the amendment had passed. Lee Garcia said after the vote the city had heard overwhelmingly from one side on the proposal during the meeting but business owners struggling to make their finances work have other perspectives. "This is not a business-friendly community," he said. City senior adviser Rod Gould said Wednesday the initial 2003 minimum wage's exemption for businesses with fewer than 25 employees made enforcement "extremely difficult" and led to some businesses finding loopholes.
Some of the people who spoke in support of the proposal said they rely on food banks; several employees of The Food Depot urged the council to support the proposal, including Executive Director Jill Dixon. "People who are working hard deserve to be able to make ends meet," she said.
Other council business Councilors received a presentation from City Manager Mark Scott and Midtown Asset Development Manager Carly Venditti about ongoing progress in the midtown redevelopment. As part of the consent agenda, councilors approved an amendment to a contract with Carrs, Riggs & Ingram allowing the city to submit its audit in two parts due to delays at the federal government. As part of the consent agenda, councilors approved a resolution sponsored by Mayor Alan Webber and Councilors Jamie Cassutt and Pilar Faulkner requiring a Pallet shelter "micro community" in each council district by 2027 or a presentation on the barriers to that timeline, if it is unable to be met. As part of the consent agenda, councilors approved a lease agreement with Wolf & Mermaid for the operation of a cafe at the Santa Fe Regional Airport with a base rent starting at $10,600.50 per year. As part of the consent agenda, councilors approved a $100,000 grant agreement with the state Department of Finance and Administration for improvements to the Genoveva Chavez Community Center. As part of the consent agenda, councilors approved a $797,142 grant with the state Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management for improvements to the culvert at Cerro Gordo.
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