Fall 2026 Minimum Wages & Compliance Changes

Below is a summary of wage increases and compliance requirements that took effect recently or will take effect soon.

Compliance updates

State, district and local updates

California
Connecticut
District of Columbia
Illinois
Maryland

Massachusetts
New York
Ohio
Oklahoma
Oregon

Pennsylvania
South Carolina
Washington

Minimum hourly wage increases

The minimum wages and effective dates below are not exhaustive. There may be additional state and local jurisdictions that have scheduled increases or additional employees (EEs) that are impacted.

Check the government sites that apply to your jurisdiction over the upcoming months to help ensure compliance with changing minimum wage rates and their effective dates.

State minimum hourly wage increases
SEPTEMBER 30, 2026
FLORIDA	$15.00
JANUARY 1, 2027
ARIZONA	$15.65
CALIFORNIA	$17.40
COLORADO	$15.71
CONNECTICUT	$17.48
MAINE	$15.70
MICHIGAN	$15.00
MINNESOTA	$11.87
MONTANA	$11.20
NEBRASKA	$15.26
NEW JERSEY	$16.25 (seasonal employers and employers with fewer than six employees)
NEW JERSEY	$16.48 (employers with six or more employees)
NEW YORK	The state minimum wage is typically adjusted annually for inflation. However, due to certain other economic conditions, the state’s minimum wage will stay the same in 2027.
NEW YORK
OHIO	$11.40
RHODE ISLAND	$17.00
SOUTH DAKOTA	$12.30
VERMONT	$14.91
VIRGINIA	$13.75
WASHINGTON	$17.73
Local minimum hourly wage increases
JANUARY 1, 2027
FLAGSTAFF, AZ	$18.95
TUCSON, AZ	$16.00
BELMONT, CA	$19.60
BURLINGAME, CA	$18.47
CUPERTINO, CA	$19.25
DALY CITY, CA	$18.10
EAST PALO ALTO, CA	TBD
EL CERRITO, CA	$19.36
FOSTER CITY, CA	$18.36
HALF MOON BAY, CA	$18.52
HAYWARD, CA	$17.40 (25 or fewer employees)
HAYWARD, CA	$18.39 (26 or more employees)
LOS ALTOS, CA	$19.25
MENLO PARK, CA	$18.05
MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA	$20.25 (Employers subject to the Mountain View Business License Tax or who maintain a facility in Mountain View, for employees performing at least two hours of work per week in Mountain View.
NOVATO, CA	$17.40 (25 or fewer employees)
	$17.97 (26 to 99 employees)
	$18.25 (100 or more employees)
OAKLAND, CA	TBD
	TBD
	TBD
PALO ALTO, CA	$19.25
PETALUMA, CA	$18.93
REDWOOD CITY, CA	$19.30
RICHMOND, CA	$19.61 (Employer pays less than $1.50 per hour toward medical benefits)
RICHMOND, CA	$18.11 (Employer pays at least $1.50 per hour toward medical benefits)
SAN CARLOS, CA	$18.35
SAN DIEGO, CA	$18.35
SAN JOSE, CA	$19.00
SAN MATEO, CA	$19.25
SAN MATEO COUNTY, CA (unincorporated areas only)	$18.58
SANTA CLARA, CA	$19.25
SANTA ROSA, CA	$18.83
SONOMA, CA	TBD
SONOMA, CA	TBD
SOUTH SAN FRANCISCO, CA	$18.75
SUNNYVALE, CA	$20.05
WEST HOLLYWOOD, CA	$20.94 (non-hotel workers)
BOULDER COUNTY, CO (unincorporated areas only)	$17.43
BOULDER CITY, CO	$18.17
DENVER, CO	$19.84
EDGEWATER, CO	$19.99
PORTLAND, ME	$17.75
ROCKLAND, ME	TBD
HOWARD COUNTY, MD	$16.45
MINNEAPOLIS, MN	$17.02
ST. PAUL, MN	$17.02
LAS CRUCES, NM	$13.47
SANTA FE, NM	$17.50
BELLINGHAM, WA	$19.73
BURIEN, WA	$22.49 (16 or more employees)
BURIEN, WA	$20.49 (15 or fewer employees)
EVERETT, WA	$20.52 (15-499 employees or annual gross income over $2 million)
KING COUNTY, WA (unincorporated areas only)	$21.57 (16-499 employees)
	$21.57 (15 or fewer employees and annual gross revenue of $2 million or greater)
	$19.57 (15 or fewer employees and annual gross revenue of less than $2 million)
RENTON, WA	$22.28 (15 or more employees worldwide)
RENTON, WA	$22.28 (1 to 14 employees with over $2 million of annual gross revenue)
SEATTLE, WA	$22.14
SEATAC, WA	$21.47
TUKWILA, WA	$22.45
Return to the top
Compliance updates
The compliance updates and their effective dates below are not exhaustive. There may be other state and local jurisdictions that have additional laws and regulations. Check the government sites that apply to your jurisdiction over the upcoming months to help ensure compliance with changing laws.
Federal
	AUGUST 6, 2026 One Big Beautiful Bill update. The Treasury Department and Internal Revenue Service have issued a fact sheet and notice, providing guidance on the new deduction for qualified overtime compensation and changes made to the employer tax credit for Paid Family and Medical Leave. SEPTEMBER 21, 2026 U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) revises disability-related requirements for federal contractors under Section 503. The DOL's Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs has revised regulations implementing Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act.
State and local jurisdictions
CALIFORNIA	AUGUST 10, 2026 San Francisco expands Fair Chance Ordinance. San Francisco amended its Fair Chance Ordinance, revising processes for adverse actions based on criminal histories, and prohibiting covered employers from considering certain out-of-state arrests or convictions involving conduct that is lawful in California. JANUARY 1, 2027 California requires certain employers to mandate Naloxone training. Employers that operate in the state of California and require CPR certification training must also require employees to take an online video training on the use of naloxone to reverse opioid overdoses. California expands bereavement leave. An eligible employee may take bereavement leave upon the death of a "designated person" who is related to the employee by blood or whose association with the employee is the equivalent of a family relationship. California further restricts monitoring in workplace bathrooms. Employers are prohibited from using workplace surveillance tools to monitor or surveil employees in workplace bathrooms, subject to limited exceptions. California adds to pay data reporting rules. The number of job categories that employers (with 100 or more employees and at least one California employee) must report increases. California expands employment protections related to immigration status. State law is amended to prohibit employers from engaging in unfair immigration-related practice against an individual for exercising or attempting exercise rights protected under any local, state, or federal statutes or regulations applicable to employees. The amended law further prohibits employers from taking actions that would reasonably deter the individual from exercising rights protected by law or coerce the individual into doing something the person has a legal right to decline.
COLORADO	JANUARY 1, 2027 Colorado AI transparency law takes effect. Developers and deployers of artificial intelligence (AI) systems with automated decision-making technology (ADMT) must take specified actions.
CONNECTICUT	OCTOBER 1, 2026 Connecticut expands notice requirements for electronic monitoring. Connecticut has expanded employer notice requirements and requires certain disclosure on the electronic monitoring of employees. Connecticut enhances Workers' Compensation benefits. Employees of health care providers and certain teachers will be eligible to receive enhanced workers' compensation benefits when they're unable to work due to a physical or negligent assault while performing duties within the scope of employment. Connecticut expands pay transparency requirements. Internal and public job advertisements must include the wages or wage range for the position and a general description of the benefits offered with the position. Employers must also provide employees with the wage ranges for their positions and a general description of the benefits offered with their positions upon hire, changes in their positions, or their first request for the wage range. Connecticut requires reasonable break times for nursing employees. Employers must provide reasonable break times for an employee to express breast milk for a nursing child or to breastfeed at the workplace, in addition to the employee’s scheduled breaks. Connecticut requires federal Americans With Disabilities Act (ADA) notice. Employers must provide employees with written notice of the right to reasonable accommodations under the ADA under multiple circumstances. Connecticut amends rules for pay codes and ‘promissory notes.’ All employers are prohibited from requiring an employee or prospective employee to execute an employment promissory note as a condition of employment. Employers with 100 or more employees must create a guide for employees on the pay codes used for overtime and its most commonly used pay differentials. JANUARY 1, 2027 Connecticut expands paid sick leave law. Connecticut's paid sick leave law is expanded to cover employers with one to 10 employees in the state.
DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA	OCTOBER 1, 2026 District of Columbia reduces paid family and medical leave benefits. For claims filed on or after October 1, 2026, through September 30, 2030, the maximum number of weeks of paid family and medical leave benefits is reduced from 12 weeks for each leave to up to six weeks for paid family leave, and up to 10 weeks for paid medical leave.
ILLINOIS	JANUARY 1, 2027 Illinois requires certain employers to provide paid jury duty leave. Illinois will require employers with more than 25 employees to provide paid jury duty leave. Illinois bars employers from requiring a driver’s license in job postings. Illinois will prohibit covered employers and employment agencies from including a statement in a job posting that an applicant must have a valid driver’s license, unless driving is one of the essential functions of the job and a business necessity. Illinois expands protections for volunteer emergency workers. Illinois will protect covered employees when they attend required volunteer emergency worker training, not only when they respond to emergencies. Illinois expressly prohibits disparate impact discrimination. Illinois generally prohibits policies or practices that appear neutral but have a disproportionate adverse impact on certain protected individuals. Illinois requires updated Equal Pay Registration Certificate (EPRC) employee data template. Employers with 100 or more employees in Illinois that submit a pay data report must use an updated template that will no longer include "prefers not to identify" as an option for reporting race or sex.
MARYLAND	OCTOBER 1, 2026 Maryland bars mandatory employer meetings on political or religious matters. Maryland will prohibit employers from taking adverse action against an individual who refuses to attend an employer-sponsored meeting regarding the employer’s opinion on religious or political matters. Employers must also display a poster in the workplace and provide a notice to new hires. JANUARY 1, 2027 Maryland employers must remit contributions to paid family leave program. Contributions to the state’s paid family leave program begin for covered employees and employers with 15 or more employees.
MASSACHUSETTS	AUGUST 5, 2026 Massachusetts requires new notice following an ICE I-9 inspection notice. Massachusetts requires employers to notify each employee in writing within 48 hours of receiving a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Notice of Inspection for Form I‑9 employment eligibility verification forms or other employment records.
NEW YORK	NOVEMBER 8, 2026 New York adds personnel records requirements. New York has enacted legislation that adds access, notice and recordkeeping requirements related to personnel records. DECEMBER 8, 2026 New York extends pay protections for construction workers. New York has clarified s pay requirements for certain construction employers.
OHIO	OCTOBER 9, 2026 Ohio relaxes child labor restrictions. 14- and 15-year olds may be employed between 7:00 p.m. and 9:00 p.m. any night preceding a day school is not in session, with approval from a parent or legal guardian. Employers must still comply with protections under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.
OKLAHOMA	NOVEMBER 1, 2026 Oklahoma amends medical marijuana law. Oklahoma employers cannot refuse to hire, discipline, discharge or penalize an applicant or employee solely due to a positive test for marijuana components or metabolites, unless certain criteria are met. Employers must also rely on the law’s definition of safety-sensitive positions.
OREGON	JANUARY 1, 2027 Oregon strengthens wage theft prevention and construction licensing penalties. Oregon will expand the definition of theft of services and strengthen penalties for direct contractors and subcontractors who knowingly contract with construction labor contractors who are not properly licensed.
PENNSYLVANIA	JULY 1, 2026 - JUNE 30, 2027 Philadelphia sets paid sick leave rate for tipped workers. Philadelphia employers with 10 or more employees must pay tipped workers who customarily and regularly received more than $50 a month in tips $17.88 per hour for paid sick time. These rates are in effect from July 1, 2026, through June 30, 2027.
SOUTH CAROLINA	OCTOBER 1, 2026 South Carolina to require Civil Air Patrol leave. Employers must provide emergency response leave and training leave to eligible employees for certain Civil Air Patrol purposes.
WASHINGTON	JANUARY 1, 2027 Washington expands Fair Chance Act. Washington state will expand its Fair Chance Act to cover employers with fewer than 15 employees. Washington extends pregnancy protections. Employers with 15 or more employees cannot require a pregnant employee's healthcare provider to provide certification to accommodate a limit on lifting more than 17 pounds. The law also requires certain records to be kept confidential and not open to public inspection. Washington extends workers' compensation protections. Upon notice of an employee injury, an employer will be required to take certain actions such as informing the worker of certain rights and providing notice. Washington expands Paid Family Leave Act. The Paid Family Leave Act's job-restoration requirement will expand to cover employers with 15 or more employees.