A new report shows minimum wage increases have had little effect on the number of jobs in Maryland and nationwide.

While the rhetoric around increasing the minimum wage often comes with the caution it will reduce low-wage employment, a new review of decades of research showed most studies found no job losses after the state or local minimum wage is raised.

Ben Zipperer, senior economist for the Economic Policy Institute and the review's co-author, said raising the minimum wage has unquestionably benefited workers.

"Minimum wages very consistently have ended up raising the incomes of low-wage workers," Zipperer pointed out. "They have done so in a way that doesn't cause any big negative employment shocks or big disruptions in their local economy."

In Maryland, the state minimum wage increased to $15 an hour Jan. 1. The minimum wage in Montgomery County increased July 1 to $17.15 for large employers, and $15.50 for mid-size employers.

The latest numbers in Maryland show the state's job growth rate increased 1.2% in the first seven months of this year, exceeding the national average. The state's labor force participation rate also increased to 65.5%, the highest number since September 2020.

Zipperer noted the studies showed raising minimum wages has other benefits.

"What does happen is that employee turnover falls dramatically and that's because the job is suddenly more attractive to workers when you pay them more," Zipperer emphasized. "That's one of the reasons why you don't actually see big falls in employment after a minimum wage increase."

He added minimum wages are one of the most well studied topics in economics. Researchers built an online repository of studies going back to 1992, and will add new studies as they are published.


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Results of a new survey of nearly 900 small business owners across the country show they are concerned about an uncertain economy, including the owners of small mom and pop operations in Nebraska.

The survey, conducted by Small Business for America's Future, shows that nearly 70% of small business owners think the Trump administration fell short on economic leadership during its first 100 days.

They cited tariffs as a key factor in creating instability.

Gladys Harrison, owner of Big Mama's Kitchen and Catering in Omaha, said the tariffs will affect the cost of the imported seasonings she uses for her family's oven-fried chicken recipe.

"They're telling me," said Harrison, "that they could see a 25% to 145% increase with these tariffs in what they're going to charge me for my seasonings."

The Trump administration has said it is imposing tariffs in an effort to create more U.S.-based jobs and improve the domestic economy.

Harrison said she is thinking of ways to avoid closing her doors or passing the price increases on to her loyal customers, many of whom have been eating Big Mama's fried chicken for generations.

"And we don't want to have our food so expensive," said Harrison, "that the people who live and work in our community can't come and spend their money with us."

Harrison said higher costs will also hinder her ability to be involved in the community, a tradition she said her mother and grandmother taught her was critical to any small, family-owned business.




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As President Donald Trump crosses the 100-day mark of his second term, a Michigan political expert is taking a closer look, especially at the executive orders issued early on.

President Trump has signed 139 executive orders, more than any president in their first 100 days. Some of his most controversial moves include banning transgender women from female sports, ending birthright citizenship for children of undocumented immigrants, and pulling the U.S. out of the Paris Climate Agreement. So far, more than 255 lawsuits have been filed against the president's policies and orders.

Matt Grossman, director of the Institute for Public Policy and Social Research at Michigan State University, said many of Trump's first-term executive orders were symbolic, but recent ones have "more teeth."

"They've been followed with a lot more executive action," Grossman explained. "The record so far is very poor in terms of getting pretty immediate restraining orders and other blocks and pauses on the administrative's actions."

On Tuesday, Trump rallied in Michigan, where supporters praised his accomplishments, from mass deportations to tariff enforcement and cutting federal bureaucracy.

Grossman pointed out in contemporary society, countries often move toward authoritarianism or democratic backsliding when elected leaders push the limits of executive power. He argued the growing concentration of power is a key reason for widespread global concern.

"They see this global pattern, where it's not the case that you have to have a revolution to change the, the governing system," Grossman observed. "The Executive Branch takes more and more power; you sort of slowly descend from a democratic starting point."

Many political analysts said early legal challenges are common when presidents issue controversial executive orders, especially when changes are rolled out quickly.


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A new report showed Montana receives a larger share of federal funding than the national average and the effects of continued cuts could be "dramatic."

For every dollar Montana contributes in federal taxes, the state receives $1.40 in return, according to the Montana Nonprofit Association report. In 2024, it totaled more than $14 billion disbursed, a number trending down in 2025 as President Donald Trump and Elon Musk make more cuts in the name of government efficiency.

Adam Jespersen, executive director of the Montana Nonprofit Association, warned "even microreductions would have dramatic impacts."

"We're all for eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse," Jespersen acknowledged. "But those conversations need to be had with care, with planful action and with communication around the 'what' and the 'why' and the 'how.'"

Federal funds reach Montanans through federal jobs, nonprofits, social programs and state and local government revenue, as well as the services they provide. It includes aid to schools, farms, housing, infrastructure, health care and more.

There are more than 650 nonprofits in Montana employing more than 60,000 people, or nearly 12% of the state's workforce. Among those organizations, 64% would be in financial peril without government funds, according to the report. Jespersen called the early cuts a "canary in the coal mine."

"Because those impacts are de minimis compared to other impacts that may come from cuts to social security, to Medicaid, to education, to local government, things like that," Jespersen explained.

Cuts could affect rural Montana in more ways, as 89% of Montana counties are more reliant on Social Security and veterans benefits than the national average, as are 86% of counties on Medicare.

In line with tribal treaty rights, 58% of revenue to tribal governments in Montana came from federal funding between 2003 and 2009.


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