Gov. J.B. Pritzker has made it clear that he wants to enact a $15 minimum wage in Illinois.
Gov. J.B. Pritzker has made it clear that he wants to enact a $15 minimum wage in Illinois.
If a current Senate bill clears the House and is signed into law, Illinois will join three other states and the District of Columbia in soon paying a minimum wage of $15 per hour.
An amendment to Senate Bill 1, added by Sen. Kimberly Lightford (D-Chicago), would hike the current minimum wage of $8.25 per hour to $10 per hour next January, followed by $1 increases annually until 2025.
The Democrat-controlled Senate passed the measure by a vote of 39-18 on Thursday and it’s now up to the House to decide if the bill will be sent to Gov. J.B. Pritzker, who made it clear in his recent gubernatorial campaign that he wants to raise the minimum wage.
Republicans, however, have warned that a higher minimum wage will mean more employment costs to the state and fewer jobs in Illinois as businesses go elsewhere. The Illinois Policy Institute recently pointed out that taxpayers will be stuck with a $1.1 billion bill if the minimum wage is increased to $15.
Currently, only California, Massachusetts and New York, plus the District of Columbia, have wage increases enacted that will see workers earning a $15 per hour minimum in the near future, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL).
Here’s a look at current minimum wage rates across the country and future enacted increases, courtesy of the NCSL.
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2019 State Minimum Wage Rates
| State | Minimum Wage | Future Enacted
Increases | Indexed Automatic Annual Adjustments |
| Alabama | none | ||
| Alaska | $9.89 | Indexed annual increases began
Jan. 1, 2017. (2014 ballot measure) | |
| Arizona | $11.00 | $12.00 eff. 1-1-20 | Rate increased annually based on cost of living beginning Jan. 2021 (2016 ballot measure) |
| Arkansas | $9.25 | $10.00 eff. 1-1-20
$11.00 eff. 1-1-21 | |
| California | $12.00 | $13.00 eff. 1-1-20
$14.00 eff. 1-1-21 $15.00 eff. 1-1-22 | Indexed annual increases based on CPI begin Jan. 1, 2023 |
| Colorado | $11.10 | $12.00 eff. 1-1-20 | Rate increased annually based on cost of living beginning Jan. 1 2021 (2016 ballot measure) |
| Connecticut | $10.10 | ||
| Delaware | $8.75 | $9.25 eff. 10-1-19 | |
| D.C. | $13.25 | $14.00 eff. 7-1-19
$15.00 eff. 7-1-20 | Indexed annual increases based on CPI begin July 1, 2021 |
| Florida | $8.46 | Annual increase based on cost of living. (Constitutional amendment 2004) | |
| Georgia | $5.15 | ||
| Guam | $8.25 | ||
| Hawaii | $10.10 | ||
| Idaho | $7.25 | ||
| Illinois | $8.25 | ||
| Indiana | $7.25 | ||
| Iowa | $7.25 | ||
| Kansas | $7.25 | ||
| Kentucky | $7.25 | ||
| Louisiana | none | ||
| Maine | $11.00 | $12.00 eff. 1-1-20 | Indexed annual increases based on CPI begin Jan 1, 2021 |
| Maryland | $10.10 | ||
| Massachusetts | $12.00 | $12.75 eff. 1-1-20
$13.50 eff. 1-1-21 $14.25 eff. 1-1-22 $15.00 eff. 1-1-23 | |
| Michigan | $9.25 | $9.45 eff. 3-29-19
$9.65 eff. 2020 $9.87 eff. 2021 $10.10 eff. 2022 $10.33 eff. 2023 $10.56 eff. 2024 $10.80 eff. 2025 $11.04 eff. 2026 $11.29 eff. 2027 $11.54 eff. 2028 $11.79 eff. 2029 $12.05 eff. 2030 | |
| Minnesota | $9.86 for large employers/$8.04 for small employers | Indexed annual increases began Jan. 1, 2019
(2014 legislation) | |
| Mississippi | none | ||
| Missouri | $8.60 (with smaller employers exempt) | $8.60 eff. 1-1-19
$9.45 eff. 1-1-20 $10.30 eff. 1-1-21 $11.15 eff. 1-1-22 $12.00 eff. 1-1-23 | Minimum wage increased or decreased by cost of living starting Jan. 1, 2024. (2018 ballot measure) |
| Montana | $8.50 for large employers/$4.00 for small employers | Increases done annually based on the CPI and effective Jan. 1 of the following year. (2006 ballot measure) | |
| Nebraska | $9.00 | ||
| Nevada | $8.25 without health benefits/$7.25 with health benefits | Increases subject to the federal minimum wage and consumer price index. Increases take effect July 1. (Constitutional amendment 2004/2006). | |
| New Hampshire | repealed by HB 133 (2011) | ||
| New Jersey | $8.85 | Indexed annual increases based on the CPI, effective Jan. 1, 2014. (Constitutional Amendment 2013) | |
| New Mexico | $7.50 | ||
| New York | $11.10 (Varies based on location and size) | $11.80 eff. 12-31-19
$12.50 eff. 12-31-20 After 12-31-20, the rate is adjusted annually for inflation until it reaches $15.00 | |
| North Carolina | $7.25 | ||
| North Dakota | $7.25 | ||
| Northern Mariana Islands | $7.25 | ||
| Ohio | $8.55 or $7.25 depending on employers' gross sales | Indexed annual increases based on the CPI. (Constitutional amendment 2006) | |
| Oklahoma | $7.25 or $2.00 depending on number of employees and gross sales | ||
| Oregon | $10.75 | $11.25 eff. 7-1-19
$12.00 eff. 7-1-20 $12.75 eff. 7-1-21 $13.50 eff. 7-1-22 | Indexed annual increases based on the CPI are effective July 1, 2023 (2016 legislation) |
| Pennsylvania | $7.25 | ||
| Puerto Rico | $7.25 or $5.08 dependent on whether employees are covered by the Federal Fair Labor Standards Act | ||
| Rhode Island | $10.50 | ||
| South Carolina | none | ||
| South Dakota | $9.10 | Annual indexed increases began
Jan. 1, 2016. (2014 ballot measure.) | |
| Tennessee | none | ||
| Texas | $7.25 | ||
| Utah | $7.25 | ||
| Vermont | $10.78 | Beginning Jan. 1, 2019, minimum wage increased annually by 5% or the CPI, whichever is smaller; it cannot decrease. Note: Vermont started indexing in 2007 but enacted additional increases in 2014.
(2014 legislation) | |
| Virgin Islands | $10.50 | ||
| Virginia | $7.25 | ||
| Washington | $12.00 | $13.50 eff. 1-1-2020 | Annual indexed increases begin Jan. 1, 2020. (ballot measure 2016) |
| West Virginia | $8.75 | ||
| Wisconsin | $7.25 | ||
| Wyoming | $5.15 |
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