W.A.G.E. Act — Workers’ Annual Growth Evaluation

Automatic Raises for a Changing Economy

America’s minimum wage hasn’t moved in over 15 years. Prices rise, rent rises, groceries rise — but wages stay frozen. The W.A.G.E. Act creates an automatic, annual adjustment to the federal minimum wage.

This bill would tie the minimum wage to the Consumer Price Index (CPI) and update it automatically each year. That means no more political gridlock, no more “fights” for basic raises — just math that keeps people afloat.

In short: if the cost of living goes up, the minimum wage does too.

Why It Matters

  • The last federal wage increase was in 2009 — that’s a 33% loss in buying power since.
  • Prices adjust every year. Wages should too.
  • It’s time for a raise that doesn’t depend on Congress pretending to care.

Current Draft Status

This bill is still in development. The general principle is set — annual minimum wage adjustments based on CPI — but the specific mechanisms and baseline rates are still being refined with input from economists, small business owners, and workers.

The goal is to build a system that’s automatic, transparent, and fair — so workers don’t have to rely on partisan cycles to keep up with inflation.

Working Draft Concepts

  1. Reset the federal minimum wage to a modern baseline (e.g., $15/hour).
  2. Automatically adjust that wage each year based on CPI-U data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
  3. Allow states to set higher wages, but not lower ones.
  4. Publish an annual “WAGE Report” explaining the new rate and data used.

Further details — including enforcement language and regional adjustment mechanisms — are being written and will be updated once finalized.

Disclaimer

I’m not a lawyer, and this draft isn’t final legislative language — but that’s the point. Congress should be full of people who start with ideas, write in public, and refine with experts, not just slogans.

Once elected, I’ll work with the Office of Legislative Counsel, the Congressional Research Service, and economists to finalize the bill into full statutory form.

But the intent is clear: wages should grow with the cost of living, automatically.