A federal judge in Colorado will decide whether President Joe Biden exceeded his authority by requiring outdoor recreation companies that operate on federal land to pay their workers a minimum wage of $15 per hour plus overtime.
Duke Bradford, owner of Arkansas Valley Adventures, and the Colorado River Outfitters Association are asking U.S. District Court Chief Judge Philip A. Brimmer to block enforcement of an April 2021 executive order that establishes a $15 minimum wage for federal contractors. The new requirements take effect on Jan. 30.
At a hearing on Thursday in downtown Denver, the plaintiffs argued they were not contractors for the government, having merely obtained permits from federal agencies to provide outdoor recreation activities on public land. Biden's executive order repealed one issued three years prior from President Donald Trump, which deemed seasonal river guides exempt from higher minimum wage requirements in order to keep outdoor recreation affordable to the public.
"There’s no explanation from President Biden about why the exception should go away," said Caleb J. Kruckenberg, representing the plaintiffs. The fact that they had permits with the federal government "can't be the reason why the president, acting through the Department of Labor, can set wage conditions on my client."
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