ALBANY - Opponents and proponents of a hike in the state minimum wage continued to spar Wednesday, with Senate Majority Leader Dean Skelos calling it a "job killer" and Democratic Assembly Speaker Sheldon Silver saying increased paychecks would ripple through the New York economy. But, while Senate Democrats held a forum on the issue, Skelos said negotiations over a bill haven't begun. "There have been no discussions on it and I believe it's a job killer," Skelos (R-Rockville Centre) said after speaking at a meeting of the National Federation of Independent Businesses, which opposes the increase. Later in the day, Silver (D-Manhattan) said raising the minimum wage would be "an economic stimulus for small businesses." Silver co-sponsored a bill to raise the minimum wage to $8.50 an hour from $7.25 and tying future increases to inflation. Because the state and federal wage floors aren't pegged to inflation, their purchasing power declines over time. Had the federal minimum wage been linked to inflation in 2009 - the last time it rose - it would be $7.75 today, based on the consumer price index. Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo hasn't jumped into the debate directly, though he has signaled his general support for a wage hike. Skelos said that raising the minimum wage would create pressure on employers to increase pay of other employees who earn slightly above the wage floor. Skelos instead is pushing a package of tax cuts for small businesses. "We're going to bring our package to the floor, but I don't see minimum wage being part of that package," he said. Silver said tax cuts were a separate issue from the minimum wage hike, which he called a "moral issue." "It will not go into a savings account, it will not go into Wall Street, it will go into mom and pop grocery stores, it will go into cleaners and bakers," he said. Senate Democrats held a forum on the issue Wednesday, taking testimony from small-business owners and low-wage workers. Raising the minimum wage is "about justice, making sure that we give the dignity and the quality of life those employees deserve," Minority Leader John Sampson (D-Brooklyn) told reporters outside the forum. But in a statement, the Long Island Association, the region's largest business group, said, "New York needs to improve its business climate and remain focused on economic development and thus the Long Island Association opposes a government-imposed increase in the minimum wage and especially efforts to index future increases with the rate of inflation." By: ED PHILLIPS