A proposed Illinois State House bill could provide a $1 increase in the Illinois minimum wage up to $6.50 an hour.

Steve Cunningham, associate vice president of Administration and Human Resource Services, said student jobs on campus could be cut as a result of the increase.

Cunningham said departments will have to be careful with the number of students they will hire if the bill should be passed.

“Students are heavily relied upon,” Cunningham said.

He said NIU employs about 3,000 hourly student workers and many are paid minimum wage.

Local representatives have mixed feelings about the proposed bill.

State Rep. David Wirsing, R-Sycamore, said there seems to be more vocal opposition to the bill than support.

“The support of it … has been very quiet,” Wirsing said.

Wirsing said a similar bill had gone through the House a couple years back calling for a minimum wage increase.

“I’m not sure I’m going to vote on the increase this time,” Wirsing said.

State Sen. Brad Burzynski, R-Sycamore, said he was not excited about the minimum wage bill either.

He said he thought the issue was more of a national concern and said with a raise, the costs of everything else will go up incrementally.

Even at $6.50 an hour, Burzynski said, he thought it still would not be a livable standard.

As the bill stands right now, Burzynski said he will vote in opposition to it.

Cunningham had mixed feelings about the increase itself. He said he thought increases in minimum wages are good.

“The other aspect is … what effect this has on everything else,” Cunningham said.