A measure to prohibit local governments in Tennessee from imposing a minimum wage higher than the federal rate failed in a House subcommittee.
The measure sponsored by Republican Rep. Charles Sargent of Franklin deadlocked on a 3-3 vote along partisan lines in the House Employee Affairs Subcommittee on Tuesday.
Bills need the support of a majority of the panel to advance.
"There's more than 700 workers that are working for Metro right now, under below living wage, so that's a lot of families that are struggling to make ends meet, and I think its really important to get themselves out of poverty," said Garrett Stark with Jobs for Justice.
The companion bill previously passed in an 18-13 vote in the Senate, where Republican Sen. Paul Stanley of Germantown said it was intended to prevent wage disparity among counties.
The same House panel earlier this session deadlocked on a Democratic bill to hike the state's minimum wage to $3.28 per hour for employees who receive tips.
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