Gov. Jerry Brown and other California leaders are discussing for the first time what his office is calling a "landmark deal" to raise the state's minimum wage to $15 an hour.
The Democratic governor plans to outline on Monday a tentative agreement he reached with labor unions to boost the state's minimum wage from $10.
The increase would give California by far the largest statewide minimum wage.
Democratic state Sen. Mark Leno of San Francisco says that if an agreement is finalized, it would go before lawmakers by replacing his minimum-wage bill that stalled last year.
Legislative approval of a minimum-wage package would avoid taking the issue to the ballot. One union-backed initiative has already qualified for the ballot, and a second, competing measure is also trying to qualify.
