WASHINGTON – District of Columbia Mayor Vincent Gray says automatic federal spending cuts have led to a slowdown of the district’s economy.
Gray’s comments at a news conference Tuesday came on the first day of his 10-day window to sign or veto a bill that would require Wal-Mart and other large retailers to pay their employees a “living wage” of at least $12.50 an hour.
The Democratic mayor has said he has concerns about the bill. The Washington Post (http://tinyurl.com/ku4j2zr ) reports that he did not respond to questions about it Tuesday.
But the mayor and his economic development team were downbeat about the job picture in the city, highlighting a recent uptick in the unemployment rate and the loss of 7,000 public-sector jobs since January.
Information from: The Washington Post, http://www.washingtonpost.com.
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