II 

116TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION S. 150 

To provide for increases in the Federal minimum wage, and for other 

purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JANUARY 16, 2019 

Mr. SANDERS (for himself, Mrs. MURRAY, Mr. SCHUMER, Ms. BALDWIN, Mr. 

BLUMENTHAL, Mr. BOOKER, Mr. BROWN, Ms. CANTWELL, Mr. CARDIN, 

Ms. DUCKWORTH, Mr. DURBIN, Mrs. FEINSTEIN, Mrs. GILLIBRAND, Ms. 

HARRIS, Ms. HIRONO, Mr. KAINE, Ms. KLOBUCHAR, Mr. LEAHY, Mr. 

MARKEY, Mr. MERKLEY, Mr. MURPHY, Mr. PETERS, Mr. REED, Ms. 

ROSEN, Mr. SCHATZ, Ms. SMITH, Ms. STABENOW, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, 

Ms. WARREN, Mr. WHITEHOUSE, and Mr. WYDEN) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Committee on 

Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions 

A BILL 

To provide for increases in the Federal minimum wage, and 

for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Raise the Wage Act’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES. 

2 (a) IN GENERAL.—Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor 

3 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(a)(1)) is amended 

4 to read as follows: 

5 ‘‘(1) except as otherwise provided in this sec6 tion, not less than— 

7 ‘‘(A) $8.55 an hour, beginning on the ef8 fective date under section 7 of the Raise the 

9 Wage Act; 

10 ‘‘(B) $9.85 an hour, beginning 1 year after 

11 such effective date; 

12 ‘‘(C) $11.15 an hour, beginning 2 years 

13 after such effective date; 

14 ‘‘(D) $12.45 an hour, beginning 3 years 

15 after such effective date; 

16 ‘‘(E) $13.75 an hour, beginning 4 years 

17 after such effective date; 

18 ‘‘(F) $15.00 an hour, beginning 5 years 

19 after such effective date; and 

20 ‘‘(G) beginning on the date that is 6 years 

21 after such effective date, and annually there22 after, the amount determined by the Secretary 

23 under subsection (h);’’. 

24 (b) DETERMINATION BASED ON INCREASE IN THE

25 MEDIAN HOURLY WAGE OF ALL EMPLOYEES.—Section 


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1 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

2 206) is amended by adding at the end the following: 

3 ‘‘(h)(1) Not later than each date that is 90 days be4 fore a new minimum wage determined under subsection 

5 (a)(1)(G) is to take effect, the Secretary shall determine 

6 the minimum wage to be in effect under this subsection 

7 for each period described in subsection (a)(1)(G). The 

8 wage determined under this subsection for a year shall 

9 be— 

10 ‘‘(A) not less than the amount in effect under 

11 subsection (a)(1) on the date of such determination; 

12 ‘‘(B) increased from such amount by the annual 

13 percentage increase, if any, in the median hourly 

14 wage of all employees as determined by the Bureau 

15 of Labor Statistics; and 

16 ‘‘(C) rounded up to the nearest multiple of 

17 $0.05. 

18 ‘‘(2) In calculating the annual percentage increase in 

19 the median hourly wage of all employees for purposes of 

20 paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary, through the Bureau of 

21 Labor Statistics, shall compile data on the hourly wages 

22 of all employees to determine such a median hourly wage 

23 and compare such median hourly wage for the most recent 

24 year for which data are available with the median hourly 

25 wage determined for the preceding year.’’. 


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1 SEC. 3. TIPPED EMPLOYEES. 

2 (a) BASE MINIMUM WAGE FOR TIPPED EMPLOYEES

3 AND TIPS RETAINED BY EMPLOYEES.—Section 

4 3(m)(2)(A)(i) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

5 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)(i)) is amended to read as fol6 lows: 

7 ‘‘(i) the cash wage paid such employee, which 

8 for purposes of such determination shall be not less 

9 than— 

10 ‘‘(I) for the 1-year period beginning on the 

11 effective date under section 7 of the Raise the 

12 Wage Act, $3.60 an hour; 

13 ‘‘(II) for each succeeding 1-year period 

14 until the hourly wage under this clause equals 

15 the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for 

16 such period, an hourly wage equal to the 

17 amount determined under this clause for the 

18 preceding year, increased by the lesser of— 

19 ‘‘(aa) $1.50; or 

20 ‘‘(bb) the amount necessary for the 

21 wage in effect under this clause to equal 

22 the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for 

23 such period, rounded up to the nearest 

24 multiple of $0.05; and 

25 ‘‘(III) for each succeeding 1-year period 

26 after the increase made pursuant to subclause 


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1 (II), the minimum wage in effect under section 

2 6(a)(1); and’’. 

3 (b) TIPS RETAINED BY EMPLOYEES.—Section 

4 3(m)(2)(A) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

5 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)) is amended— 

6 (1) in the second sentence of the matter fol7 lowing clause (ii), by striking ‘‘of this subsection, 

8 and all tips received by such employee have been re9 tained by the employee’’ and inserting ‘‘of this sub10 section. Any employee shall have the right to retain 

11 any tips received by such employee’’; and 

12 (2) by adding at the end the following: ‘‘An em13 ployer shall inform each employee of the right and 

14 exception provided under the preceding sentence.’’. 

15 (c) SCHEDULED REPEAL OF SEPARATE MINIMUM

16 WAGE FOR TIPPED EMPLOYEES.— 

17 (1) TIPPED EMPLOYEES.—Section 3(m)(2)(A) 

18 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

19 203(m)(2)(A)), as amended by subsections (a) and 

20 (b), is further amended by striking the sentence be21 ginning with ‘‘In determining the wage an employer 

22 is required to pay a tipped employee,’’ and all that 

23 follows through ‘‘of this subsection.’’ and inserting 

24 ‘‘The wage required to be paid to a tipped employee 

25 shall be the wage set forth in section 6(a)(1).’’. 


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1 (2) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.—Subsection (i) 

2 of section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

3 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by section 5, is 

4 further amended by striking ‘‘or in accordance with 

5 subclause (II) or (III) of section 3(m)(2)(A)(i)’’. 

6 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

7 by paragraphs (1) and (2) shall take effect on the 

8 date that is one day after the date on which the 

9 hourly wage under subclause (III) of section 

10 3(m)(2)(A)(i) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

11 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(2)(A)(i)), as amended by 

12 subsection (a), takes effect. 

13 SEC. 4. NEWLY HIRED EMPLOYEES WHO ARE LESS THAN 20 

14 YEARS OLD. 

15 (a) BASE MINIMUM WAGE FOR NEWLY HIRED EM16 PLOYEES WHO ARE LESS THAN 20 YEARS OLD.—Section 

17 6(g)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 

18 U.S.C. 206(g)(1)) is amended by striking ‘‘a wage which 

19 is not less than $4.25 an hour.’’ and inserting the fol20 lowing: ‘‘a wage at a rate that is not less than— 

21 ‘‘(A) for the 1-year period beginning on the ef22 fective date under section 7 of the Raise the Wage 

23 Act, $5.50 an hour; 

24 ‘‘(B) for each succeeding 1-year period until the 

25 hourly wage under this paragraph equals the wage 


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1 in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such period, an 

2 hourly wage equal to the amount determined under 

3 this paragraph for the preceding year, increased by 

4 the lesser of— 

5 ‘‘(i) $1.25; or 

6 ‘‘(ii) the amount necessary for the wage in 

7 effect under this paragraph to equal the wage 

8 in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such period, 

9 rounded up to the nearest multiple of $0.05; 

10 and 

11 ‘‘(C) for each succeeding 1-year period after the 

12 increase made pursuant to subparagraph (B)(ii), the 

13 minimum wage in effect under section 6(a)(1).’’. 

14 (b) SCHEDULED REPEAL OF SEPARATE MINIMUM

15 WAGE FOR NEWLY HIRED EMPLOYEES WHO ARE LESS

16 THAN 20 YEARS OLD.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Section 6(g)(1) of the Fair 

18 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

19 206(g)(1)), as amended by subsection (a), shall be 

20 repealed. 

21 (2) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.—Subsection (i) 

22 of section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 

23 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by section 

24 3(c)(2), is further amended by striking ‘‘or subpara25 graph (B) or (C) of subsection (g)(1),’’. 


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1 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The repeal and amend2 ment made by paragraphs (1) and (2), respectively, 

3 shall take effect on the date that is one day after the 

4 date on which the hourly wage under subparagraph 

5 (C) of section 6(g)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards 

6 Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(g)(1)), as amended by 

7 subsection (a), takes effect. 

8 SEC. 5. PUBLICATION OF NOTICE. 

9 Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 

10 (29 U.S.C. 206), as amended by the preceding sections, 

11 is further amended by adding at the end the following: 

12 ‘‘(i) Not later than 60 days prior to the effective date 

13 of any increase in the required wage determined under 

14 subsection (a)(1) or subparagraph (B) or (C) of subsection 

15 (g)(1), or in accordance with subclause (II) or (III) of sec16 tion 3(m)(2)(A)(i) or section 14(c)(1)(A), the Secretary 

17 shall publish in the Federal Register and on the website 

18 of the Department of Labor a notice announcing each in19 crease in such required wage.’’. 

20 SEC. 6. PROMOTING ECONOMIC SELF-SUFFICIENCY FOR IN21 DIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES. 

22 (a) WAGES.— 

23 (1) TRANSITION TO FAIR WAGES FOR INDIVID24 UALS WITH DISABILITIES.—Subparagraph (A) of 

25 section 14(c)(1) of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 


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1 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)(1)) is amended to read as 

2 follows: 

3 ‘‘(A) at a rate that equals, or exceeds, for each 

4 year, the greater of— 

5 ‘‘(i)(I) $4.25 an hour, beginning 1 year 

6 after the date the wage rate specified in section 

7 6(a)(1)(A) takes effect; 

8 ‘‘(II) $6.40 an hour, beginning 2 years 

9 after such date; 

10 ‘‘(III) $8.55 an hour, beginning 3 years 

11 after such date; 

12 ‘‘(IV) $10.70 an hour, beginning 4 years 

13 after such date; 

14 ‘‘(V) $12.85 an hour, beginning 5 years 

15 after such date; and 

16 ‘‘(VI) the wage rate in effect under section 

17 6(a)(1), on the date that is 6 years after the 

18 date the wage specified in section 6(a)(1)(A) 

19 takes effect; or 

20 ‘‘(ii) if applicable, the wage rate in effect 

21 on the day before the date of enactment of the 

22 Raise the Wage Act for the employment, under 

23 a special certificate issued under this para24 graph, of the individual for whom the wage rate 

25 is being determined under this subparagraph,’’. 


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1 (2) PROHIBITION ON NEW SPECIAL CERTIFI2 CATES; SUNSET.—Section 14(c) of the Fair Labor 

3 Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)) (as 

4 amended by paragraph (1)) is further amended by 

5 adding at the end the following: 

6 ‘‘(6) PROHIBITION ON NEW SPECIAL CERTIFI7 CATES.—Notwithstanding paragraph (1), the Secretary 

8 shall not issue a special certificate under this subsection 

9 to an employer that was not issued a special certificate 

10 under this subsection before the date of enactment of the 

11 Raise the Wage Act. 

12 ‘‘(7) SUNSET.—Beginning on the day after the date 

13 on which the wage rate described in paragraph 

14 (1)(A)(i)(VI) takes effect, the authority to issue special 

15 certificates under paragraph (1) shall expire, and no spe16 cial certificates issued under paragraph (1) shall have any 

17 legal effect. 

18 ‘‘(8) TRANSITION ASSISTANCE.—Upon request, the 

19 Secretary shall provide— 

20 ‘‘(A) technical assistance and information to 

21 employers issued a special certificate under this sub22 section for the purposes of— 

23 ‘‘(i) transitioning the practices of such em24 ployers to comply with this subsection, as 

25 amended by the Raise the Wage Act; and 


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1 ‘‘(ii) ensuring continuing employment op2 portunities for individuals with disabilities re3 ceiving a special minimum wage rate under this 

4 subsection; and 

5 ‘‘(B) information to individuals employed at a 

6 special minimum wage rate under this subsection, 

7 which may include referrals to Federal or State enti8 ties with expertise in competitive integrated employ9 ment.’’. 

10 (3) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendments made 

11 by this subsection shall take effect on the date of en12 actment of this Act. 

13 (b) PUBLICATION OF NOTICE.— 

14 (1) AMENDMENT.—Subsection (i) of section 6 

15 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 

16 206), as amended by section 4(b)(2), is further 

17 amended by striking ‘‘or section 14(c)(1)(A),’’. 

18 (2) EFFECTIVE DATE.—The amendment made 

19 by paragraph (1) shall take effect on the day after 

20 the date on which the wage rate described in para21 graph (1)(A)(i)(VI) of section 14(c) of the Fair 

22 Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 214(c)), as 

23 amended by subsection (a)(1), takes effect. 


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1 SEC. 7. GENERAL EFFECTIVE DATE. 

2 Except as otherwise provided in this Act or the 

3 amendments made by this Act, this Act and the amend4 ments made by this Act shall take effect on the first day 

5 of the third month that begins after the date of enactment 

6 of this Act. 

Æ 


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