The state House voted along party lines Wednesday to raise the minimum wage to $15 for most Pennsylvanians, and to $12 for those working in smaller, rural counties.
It's a significant step in the latest effort by Democrats to get it above the federal rate of $7.25.
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Pennsylvania's minimum wage has not been increased since 2008 and is lower than all surrounding states — New York, Ohio, New Jersey, West Virginia, Maryland and Delaware.
The measure's sponsor, House Labor and Industry Committee chair Jason Dawkins (D-Philadelphia), said the bill is in an attempt to compromise with Republicans who have long warned about the potential impacts on businesses, especially in smaller counties with a lower cost of living.
"Since I've been chair, we've been trying to figure out a different approach to get this done," Dawkins told the Capital-Star. "This time around, we had a little bit more insight into where our challenges lie, one particularly being that some of our counties were worried about moving too quickly, and some were not comfortable going over $12."
A previous bill sponsored by Dawkins passed the House in 2023, but died in the Republican-controlled Senate. And in 2019, the Senate passed a Democratic-led bill to raise it to $9.25, which died in the then-GOP-controlled House.
Dawkins' latest bill would see the minimum wage rise gradually each year, reaching $15 in most counties on Jan. 1, 2028. It would also raise the tipped minimum wage from $2.83 to 60% of the minimum.
Counties with populations below 210,000, with the exception of Centre, Monroe and Pike counties, would only see the minimum wage rise to $12 in the same timeframe. A spokesperson for the House Democratic Caucus said the three smaller counties were put in the $15 bracket at the request of Democratic members who represent them.
One exception to the gradual rise to $15 would be Philadelphia County, which Dawkins represents. There, the minimum wage would rise to $15 on Jan. 1, 2026.
"Philadelphia has the highest population of folks who are in what we call deep poverty levels," Dawkins said.
He added there is particular urgency given the possibility some of those people may lose access to federal benefits like Medicaid and food assistance under a proposed bill moving through the GOP-controlled U.S. Congress.
"We wanted to have some type of safety net there because we know those folks might be losing benefits and other services," he said.
But Dawkins' attempt to offer an olive branch to GOP lawmakers in the form of gradual wage hike and a lower target in small counties appears to have failed in his own chamber. Every House Republican voted against the bill, and many criticized it during a two-hour debate on the floor Wednesday afternoon.
"Not every wage is designed to be a livable wage," Minority Leader Jesse Topper (R-Bedford) "My 16-year-old son is not working for a livable wage. Someone who is retired and is helping out part-time, that is not necessarily a livable wage."
He also warned that raising the minimum wage could result in the elimination of low wage jobs and harm small businesses in particular.
Others opposed the very provisions Dawkins said were intended to earn bipartisan support.
Rep. Kate Klunk (R-York) warned that creating different minimum wages across counties could lead to confusion for businesses that cross county lines, or encourage business owners to set up shop where the wage is lower.
"This county-based patchwork of minimum wages is going to be a mess," Klunk said. She used examples of businesses with locations in York and Adams counties as examples, including golf courses that straddle the border between them.
"This bill is truly unworkable," she said. "It is a compliance nightmare."
Rep. Mike Jones (R-York) was one of few Republicans to signal openness to raising the minimum wage during debate, but said he could not support Dawkins' bill.
"I do commend the majority chair for what I think is a good faith attempt at a reasonable compromise," he said.
However, he added that he would want to see exceptions to the minimum wage for nonprofits and high-school aged employees.
'Potential to find middle ground'
To become law, the bill will have to pass the Republican-controlled Senate.
Senate Majority Leader Joe Pittman (R-Indiana) said that there may be room for compromise on a minimum wage increase, especially if paired with Republican-backed deregulation efforts he said could help grow "maximum wage jobs."
"Making sure working families have access to good, family-sustaining jobs is key to helping our commonwealth grow and thrive," Pittman told the Capital-Star in a statement. "There is potential to finding [sic] a middle ground for an increase, but any possible action would need to be a commonsense adjustment, and sensitive to the impact changes would have on small businesses and non-profit organizations."
Republican Sen. Dan Laughlin (R-Erie), who has previously introduced a bill to raise the minimum wage to $15, commended the House's effort, but said he would not support a bill with a county-by-county approach.
"While I appreciate that the House is trying to advance the conversation, I do not support HB 1549 in its current form," Laughlin said in an emailed statement. "A minimum wage tied to county size just deepens the economic divides we're supposed to be addressing. If we're going to get serious about raising the minimum wage, we need to do it uniformly across the state, not with a patchwork approach that leaves people behind based on where they live."
Laughlin was an early Republican supporter of raising the minimum wage to $15 in Pennsylvania. But national trends may indicate more openness from members of his party this time around.
On Tuesday, conservative U.S. Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Missouri) introduced a bill to raise the minimum wage to $15 for all Americans.
He told NBC News, "If we're going to be a working people's party, we have to do something for working people. And working people haven't gotten a raise in years. So they need a raise."
His comments reflect an openness to his party's increasing appeal to working class voters that was made apparent in the latest general election, which saw them move away from their traditional support of Democrats.
Dawkins, the Pennsylvania bill's sponsor, is also aware of the shift, and hopes that it will help the bill earn the support that it needs to pass.
"I'm excited by the prospects, but I'm also disappointed that there could be a federal minimum wage that's gonna be higher than the state minimum wage — and it's being offered by one of the most conservative members of Congress," he joked. "But I'm hopeful it'll help folks come around to the idea."
"This is what I believe we got elected to do," he added.
Pennsylvania Capital-Star is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Pennsylvania Capital-Star maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Tim Lambert for questions: info@penncapital-star.com.