Brief State Minimum Wages

Summary

Currently, 30 states and Washington D.C. have minimum wages above the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour.

Five states have not adopted a state minimum wage: Alabama, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee. Two states, Georgia and Wyoming, have a minimum wage below $7.25 per hour. In all seven of these states, the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour applies.

2021 Highlights

• Twenty-one states began 2021 with higher minimum wages. Five additional states raised their minimum wages later in the year. Nine states (Alaska, Arizona, Colorado, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, Ohio, South Dakota and Washington) automatically increased their rates based on cost of living. Seventeen states (Arkansas, California, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont and Virginia) raised wages due to previously approved legislation or ballot initiatives.
• Delaware enacted SB 15 in July, which will gradually increase the minimum wage rate to $15 by 2025.
• Rhode Island enacted SB 1 in May, which will gradually increase the minimum wage rate to $15 by 2025.

2020 Highlights

• Twenty-one states began 2020 with higher minimum wages. Seven states (Alaska, Florida, Minnesota, Montana, Ohio, South Dakota, and Vermont) automatically increased their rates based on the cost of living, while 14 states (Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Illinois, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, and Washington) increased their rates due to previously approved legislation or ballot initiatives.
• Florida voters approved Amendment 2, raising the state minimum wage to $15.00 per hour by 2026. The amendment raises the minimum wage to $10.00 per hour effective September 2021, with a continuing annual increase until reaching $15.00 per hour.

2019 Highlights

• Eighteen states began the new year with higher minimum wages. Eight states (Alaska, Florida, Minnesota, Montana, New Jersey, Ohio, South Dakota and Vermont) automatically increased their rates based on the cost of living, while 10 states (Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Maine, Massacusetts, Missouri, New York, Rhode Island and Washington) increased their rates due to previously approved legislation or ballot initiatives. Other states that will see rate increases during the 2019 calendar year include D.C., Delaware, Michigan and Oregon.
• New Jersey enacted AB 15 in February, which will gradually increase the minimum wage rate to $15 by 2024. (The minimum wage for tipped employees will increase to $9.87 over the same period.) The schedule of annual increases was delayed for certain seasonal workers and employees of small employers, and a training wage of 90 percent of the minimum wage was created for certain employees for their first 120 hours of work.
• Illinois enacted SB 1 in February, which will phase in a minimum wage increase to $15 by 2025. The measure also adjusted the youth wage for workers under age 18 (it will gradually increase to $13 by 2025) and created a tax credit program to offset labor cost increases for smaller employers.
• Maryland's legislature overrode a gubernatorial veto to enact a measure (SB 280) that phased-in a minimum wage increase to $15 by 2024 (with a delayed schedule of rate increases for smaller employers) and eliminated and the state subminimum wage for employees younger than age 20.
• New Mexico enacted SB 437 in April, which will raise the state minimum wage to $12 by 2023. The measure also established a training wage for high school students and slightly increased the tipped minimum wage.
• Connecticut enacted HB 5004 in May, which will raise the state minimum wage to $15 by 2023. The measure also indexed the minimum wage to the employment cost index.
• Nevada enacted AB 456 in June, which phases in a minimum wage increase over several years. By July 1, 2024, the minimum wage will be $11.00 for employers that offer their employees health benefits and $12.00 for employers that do not offer health benefits.

2018 Highlights

• Eighteen states began the new year with higher minimum wages. Eight states (Alaska, Florida, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, Ohio and South Dakota) automatically increased their rates based on the cost of living, while eleven states (Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maine, Michigan, New York, Rhode Island, Vermont and Washington) increased their rates due to previously approved legislation or ballot initiatives.
• Massachusetts enacted a measure (HB 4640) to increase the state minimum wage to $15 over five years. The tipped wage would rise to $6.75 from $3.75 over the same time period.
• Delaware enacted SB 170, which phases in a two-step increase. The rate rises from $8.25 to $8.75 effective Jan. 1, 2019 (as amended by HB 483), and will increase again to $9.25 effective Oct. 1, 2019.
• Voters in Arkansas and Missouri approved ballot initiatives phasing in increases to $11 and $12 per hour, respectively.
• The Michigan legislature enacted SB 1171, which raises the minimum wage on an annual basis until it reaches $12.05 in 2030.

2017 Highlights

• Nineteen states began 2017 with higher minimum wages. Seven states (Alaska, Florida, Missouri, Montana, New Jersey, Ohio and South Dakota) automatically increased their rates based on the cost of living, five states (Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Maine and Washington) increased their rates through ballot initiatives previously approved by voters, and seven states (California, Connecticut, Hawaii, Massachusetts, Michigan, New York and Vermont) did so as a result of legislation passed in prior sessions. Washington D.C., Maryland and Oregon raised their respective minimum wages on July 1, 2017 due to previously enacted legislation.
• Rhode Island was the only state to enact a minimum wage increase during the 2017 legislative sessions.

2016 Highlights

• Voters in Arizona, Colorado, Maine and Washington approved November ballot measures to raise their respective minimum wages. Arizona, Colorado and Maine will incrementally increase their minimum wages to $12 an hour by 2020. Washington's will be increased incrementally to $13.50 an hour by 2020.
• New York became the second state to pass a new law that would raise the minimum wage in New York City to $15 per hour by the end of 2018. Washington D.C. followed suit, enacting a law to raise the minimum wage in the District to $15 per hour by July 1, 2020.
• On April 4, California Governor Jerry Brown signed SB 3 into law. The new law increases the minimum wage to $15 per hour by Jan. 1, 2022, for employers with 26 or more employees. For employers with 25 or fewer employees the minimum wage will reach $15 per hour by Jan. 1, 2023. Increases may be paused by the governor if certain economic or budgetary conditions exist. Beginning the first Jan. 1 after the minimum wage reaches $15 per hour for smaller employers, the minimum wage is indexed annually for inflation.
• On March 23, Governor Kenneth Mapp of the Virgin Islands signed Act 7856, establishing an $8.35 minimum wage with scheduled annual increases on June 1, 2017, and 2018 until the rate reaches $10.50.
• On March 2, Oregon Governor Kate Brown signed SB 1532 into law. It establishes a series of annual minimum wage increases from July 1, 2016, through July 1, 2022. Beginning July 1, 2023, the minimum wage rate will be indexed to inflation based on the Consumer Price Index.
• Fourteen states begin the new year with higher minimum wages. Of those, 12 states increased their rates through legislation passed in the 2014 or 2015 sessions, while two states automatically increased their rates based on the cost of living.
• Of the 11 states that currently tie increases to the cost of living, eight did not increase their minimum wage rates for 2016. Colorado provided for an 8-cent increase and South Dakota granted a 5-cent increase per hour. Increases in Nevada are required to take effect in July.
• Maryland, Minnesota and D.C. have additional increases scheduled for 2016. Nevada will announce in July whether or not there will be a cost of living increase to their indexed minimum wage.

State Minimum Wages

The table below reflects current state minimum wages in effect as of Jan. 1, 2021, as well as future enacted increases.

Notes

¹American Samoa: The Fair Minimum Wage Act of 2007 (Public Law 110-28) sets minimum wage rates within American Samoa and provides for additional increases in the minimum wage of $0.50 per hour each year on May 25, until reaching the minimum wage generally applicable in the United States. The wage rates are set for particular industries, not for an employee's particular occupation. The rates are minimum rates; an employer may choose to pay an employee at a rate higher than the rate(s) for its industry.

² California: The minimum wage scheduled increases are delayed by one year for employers with 25 or fewer employees. The rate increases to $10.50 per hour effective 1/1/2018 and is increased by $1.00 increments annually until it reaches $15.00 effective 1/1/2023

³Connecticut: The Connecticut minimum wage rate automatically increases to 1/2 of 1 percent above the rate set in the Fair Labor Standards Act if the Federal minimum wage rate equals or becomes higher than the State minimum.

⁴Illinois: Employers with 50 or fewer full time employees are eligible for a tax credit equal to a certain percentage of the cost of their annual wage increases. Employers are only eligible for the credit if the average wage for employees making $55,000 or less increases over the year. The amount of the credit that can be claimed is as follows: 25 percent for the 2020 reporting period; 21 percent for 2021; 17 percent for 2022; 13 percent for 2023; 9 percent for 2024; 5 percent for 2025; 5 percent for 2026; 5 percent for 2027, but only for employers with no more than five employees.

⁵ The Maine minimum wage is automatically replaced with the Federal minimum wage rate if it is higher than the State minimum.

6 Mayland: For small employers (14 or fewer employees), the schedule of increases is as follows: $11.00 eff. 1-1-20; $11.60 eff. 1-1-21; $12.20 eff. 1-1-22; $12.80 eff. 1-1-23; $13.40 eff. 1-1-24; $14.00 eff. 1-1-2025; $14.60 eff. 1-1-26; $15.00 eff. 7-1-26.

⁷ The Massachusetts minimum wage rate automatically increases to 10 cents above the rate set in the Fair Labor Standards Act if the Federal minimum wage equals or becomes higher than the State minimum.

8 Minnesota: With the passage of H.B. 2091 (2014), the annual sales volume threshold was reduced to $500,000. For large employers, with an annual sales volume of $500,000 or more, the minimum wage is currently $9.50; for small employers, those with an annual sales volume of less than $500,000, the minimum wage is $7.75.

9 Missouri - In addition to the exemption for federally covered employment, the law exempts, among others, employees of a retail or service business with gross annual sales or business done of less than $500,000.

¹⁰Montana: the $4.00 rate applies to businesses with gross annual sales of $110,000 or less; $8.15 applies to all others.

¹¹Nevada: $8.25 without health benefits; $7.25 with health benefits.

¹² New Jersey: For small employers (six employees or fewer), the schedule of increases is as follows: $10.30 eff. 1-1-20; $11.10 eff. 1-1-21; $11.90 eff. 1-1-22; $12.70 eff. 1-1-23; $13.50 eff. 1-1-24; $14.30 eff. 1-1-25; $15.00 eff 1-1-26.

¹³ New York: The new minimum wage varies across the state based on geographical location and, in New York City, employer size.

¹⁴ Ohio: $7:25 for employers grossing $299,000 or less

¹⁵Oklahoma: Employers of ten or more full-time employees at any one location and employers with annual gross sales over $100,000 irrespective of number of full-time employees are subject to federal minimum wage; all others are subject to state minimum wage of $2.00 (OK ST T. 40 § 197.5).

¹⁶Oregon: In addition to the new standard minimum wage rate, SB 1532 sets out a higher rate for employers located in the urban growth boundary, and a lower rate for employers located in nonurban counties. Their respective planned increases are below.

¹⁷Puerto Rico: Employers covered by the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) are subject to the Federal minimum wage of $7.25. Employers not covered by the FLSA will be subject to a minimum wage that is at least 70 percent of the Federal minimum wage or the applicable mandatory decree rate of $5.08, whichever is higher. The Secretary of Labor and Human Resources may authorize a rate based on a lower percentage for any employer who can show that implementation of the 70 percent rate would substantially curtail employment in that business.

Other Exceptions

• Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Puerto Rico, Utah and Virginia exclude from coverage any employment that is subject to the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act.
• Hawaii, Kansas and Michigan exclude from coverage any employment that is subject to the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act, if the State wage is higher than the Federal wage.
• The Georgia state minimum wage is $5.15. Employees covered under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act are subject to the federal minimum wage of $7.25, but those not covered under the FLSA may be paid the state minimum wage of $5.15.