Federal

Original Living Wage Act

Source: Congress.gov · 967 words in original text

What This Bill Does

This bill changes how the federal minimum wage is calculated. Instead of Congress setting the wage amount, the Secretary of Labor will calculate it based on the federal poverty threshold (the income level the government says a family needs to live on) for a family of 4. The wage would be set high enough so a full-time worker earns 25.5 percent more than that poverty threshold.

Who It Affects

Workers earning the federal minimum wage. The Secretary of Labor. The Bureau of the Census. Congress, state governments, local governments, and tribal governments that may set their own higher minimum wages.

Key Provisions

• The Secretary of Labor must calculate a new federal minimum wage by June 1, 2023, and then every 4 years after that, using a specific formula based on the federal poverty threshold for a family of 4 (Sec. 3). • The minimum wage will be the hourly rate that allows someone working 40 hours per week for 52 weeks per year to earn an annual income that is 25.5 percent higher than the federal poverty threshold for a family of 4 with two children under age 18 living in the 48 contiguous states (Sec. 3). • The Secretary must publish the new minimum wage in the Federal Register by October 1 each year (Sec. 3). • The minimum wage cannot decrease from the rate currently in effect. If the new calculation results in a lower wage, the Secretary keeps the existing wage rate (Sec. 3). • The new minimum wage becomes effective September 1, 2023 (Sec. 3).

What Changes

The current federal minimum wage system changes to an automatic calculation every 4 years instead of requiring Congress to vote on raising it. The wage amount changes based on the federal poverty threshold for a family of 4, not a fixed dollar amount set by law.

Important Definitions

Federal poverty threshold: The income level the government determines that a family needs to live on, as determined by the Bureau of the Census.

Effective Date

September 1, 2023 (Sec. 3).

I 118TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 122 To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act to provide for the calculation of the minimum wage based on the Federal poverty threshold for a family of 4, as determined by the Bureau of the Census. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES JANUARY 9, 2023 Mr. GREEN of Texas introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Education and the Workforce A BILL To amend the Fair Labor Standards Act to provide for the calculation of the minimum wage based on the Fed- eral poverty threshold for a family of 4, as determined by the Bureau of the Census. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Original Living Wage 4 Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS; SENSE OF CONGRESS. 6 (a) FINDINGS.—Congress finds the following: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Jan 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H122.IH H122 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 122 IH (1) In 2015, there were approximately 1 43,100,000 Americans living in poverty who were 2 separated from the opportunities of the Nation by 3 their income, their housing, and their access to edu- 4 cation, jobs, and health care. 5 (2) A full-time worker earning the Federal min- 6 imum wage earns an income below the Federal pov- 7 erty threshold for a family of 4, consisting of 2 8 adults and 2 children. 9 (3) The average fair market rent for a 1-bed- 10 room apartment is more than 65 percent of the 11 monthly income of a full-time worker earning the 12 minimum wage. In comparison, the generally accept- 13 ed definition of affordability is for a household to 14 pay not more than 30 percent of its income on hous- 15 ing. 16 (4) Two full-time workers earning the Federal 17 minimum wage earn an income below the national 18 housing wage for a 1-bedroom apartment, the 19 amount a person needs to earn to afford a 1-bed- 20 room apartment at average rent. 21 (b) SENSE OF CONGRESS.—It is the sense of Con- 22 gress that— 23 (1) the Federal minimum wage should, as a 24 minimum, be adjusted every 4 years so that a person 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Jan 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H122.IH H122 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 122 IH working for such a wage may earn an annual income 1 that is not less than 25.5 percent higher than the 2 Federal poverty threshold for a family of 4, as deter- 3 mined by the Bureau of the Census; 4 (2) the minimum wage should be set at a level 5 high enough to allow 2 full-time minimum wage 6 workers to earn an income above the national hous- 7 ing wage; and 8 (3) Congress, any of the several States, the Dis- 9 trict of Columbia, any territory or possession of the 10 United States, any Indian tribe, or any local or mu- 11 nicipal government of a State may establish a higher 12 minimum wage requirement than that established in 13 this Act. 14 SEC. 3. MINIMUM WAGE. 15 Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 16 (29 U.S.C. 206) is amended— 17 (1) in subsection (a)(1)— 18 (A) by striking ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub- 19 paragraph (B); 20 (B) by inserting ‘‘and’’ at the end of sub- 21 paragraph (C); and 22 (C) by inserting at the end the following: 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Jan 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H122.IH H122 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 122 IH ‘‘(D) the amount determined by the Sec- 1 retary under subsection (b), beginning Sep- 2 tember 1, 2023;’’; and 3 (2) by redesignating subsection (b) as sub- 4 section (c) and inserting after subsection (a) the fol- 5 lowing: 6 ‘‘(b)(1) Subject to paragraph (2), not later than June 7 1, 2023, and once every 4 years thereafter, the Secretary 8 shall determine the minimum wage rate applicable under 9 subsection (a)(1) based on the formula described in para- 10 graph (3). The Secretary shall publish such wage rate in 11 the Federal Register not later than October 1 of each year. 12 ‘‘(2) If the minimum wage rate determined by the 13 Secretary under paragraph (1) would result in a lower 14 minimum wage rate than the minimum wage rate in effect 15 at the time of such determination, the Secretary may not 16 adjust the minimum wage rate so in effect. 17 ‘‘(3) The minimum wage rate determined by the Sec- 18 retary under paragraph (1) shall be the minimum hourly 19 wage sufficient for a person working for such wage for 20 40 hours per week, 52 weeks per year, to earn an annual 21 income in an amount that is 25.5 percent higher than the 22 Federal poverty threshold for a family of 4, with two chil- 23 dren under the age of 18, and living in any of the 48 con- 24 tiguous States, as published by the Bureau of the Census 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Jan 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H122.IH H122 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 122 IH for the year in which the wage rate is being so deter- 1 mined.’’. 2 Æ VerDate Sep 11 2014 00:17 Jan 18, 2023 Jkt 039200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6301 E:\BILLS\H122.IH H122 kjohnson on DSK79L0C42PROD with BILLS

Important: This plain English summary was generated by AI and is provided for informational purposes only. It is not legal advice. Always consult the official bill text on Congress.gov or a qualified attorney for legal matters.