Legislators have agreed on a bill that would raise the minimum hourly wage to $18 by 2028.
House Bill 2510 passed a conference committee Friday, with legislators voting unanimously to amend the bill to provide a slower incremental increase in pay.
A previous draft of the bill — and also a Senate bill that died earlier in the session — would have increased the minimum wage in three increments until it maxed out at $18 an hour in 2026. The version approved by the conference committee pushes that schedule back, with the final hike to $18 now happening in 2028.
The amended bill also incrementally increases the state’s tip credit, while the previous version would have removed the tip credit entirely by 2026.
The amendments also provide a permanent earned income tax credit for qualified taxpayers, which had been removed from other drafts of the bill. However, the bill does not include other provisions from past versions such as an increase in food tax credits for lower-income people.
HB 2510 must now face a final floor vote from both chambers before going before Gov. David Ige for his consideration.