The Fair Wage Act of 2025 replaces the current federal minimum wage with a regional cost-of-living based system that varies by geographic area. Rather than a single national minimum wage, employers would be required to pay workers based on either their metropolitan statistical area or nonmetropolitan region, with wages calculated as a percentage of the national average hourly wage adjusted for regional price differences. The bill phases in the wage changes gradually—starting at 40 percent of the national average wage on the effective date, increasing to 45 percent after one year and 50 percent after two years, with annual adjustments thereafter. The legislation also adjusts related wage provisions, including reducing the minimum cash wage requirement for tipped employees to 30 percent of the regional minimum wage and lowering the youth minimum wage to two-thirds of the regional rate for workers aged 18 and younger. The bill takes effect approximately three months after enactment.
Take Action
Your position
Add a comment
to comment on this bill.
Annotate the text
Highlight any passage on the Summary or Full Text tab to attach a note. Annotations appear on the Annotations tab.