On Jan. 1, 2024, 22 states increased their minimum wages, raising pay for an estimated 9.9 million workers and resulting in $6.95 billion in additional wages. Minimum wages in Maryland, New Jersey, and upstate New York reached or exceeded $15 an hour for the first time, joining California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Washington, and the rest of New York. Seven more states have passed legislation or ballot measures to reach or surpass $15 an hour in the coming years (Delaware, Florida, Hawaii, Illinois, Nebraska, Rhode Island, and Virginia). Washington state has the highest state minimum wage at the beginning of the year as it increases from $15.74 to $16.28 due to an inflation adjustment.
The cost of living has increased by about 40 percent since Congress last raised the federal minimum wage in 2009 to $7.25 per hour. Working fulltime at that rate yields $15,080 in annual income. It is difficult to live on that amount anywhere in the nation, even for single adults. Although most states have pushed their minimums higher, fifteen still set their minimum wage at the federal benchmark. Another five, all in the south, default to the federal $7.25 standard because they have not passed minimum wage laws.