LITTLE ROCK — Arkansas Attorney General Dustin McDaniel says a measure to gradually increase Arkansas' minimum wage to $8.50 should stay on the ballot.
McDaniel filed a friend-of-the-court brief Tuesday in a lawsuit that seeks to remove the proposal from next month's ballot. The Arkansas Supreme Court is considering the case.
That lawsuit challenges the validity of signatures turned in to qualify for the ballot, but McDaniel's brief addresses only a separate issue of whether the petition was submitted on time. State law says petitions must be submitted within 60 days of an election. This year, that date fell on July Fourth, so the deadline was extended until the next business day, July 7.
McDaniel's brief says it was proper for the secretary of state's office to extend the deadline.
