Since 2009, the federal minimum wage in the U.S. has been $7.25 an hour. A new bill introduced in the Senate hopes to raise it to $15 an hour next year, followed by incremental increases to reflect inflation.
In some states — including those that already have a minimum wage of $15 an hour or more — that rate isn’t enough to cover the average costs a resident may have, according to MIT’s Living Wage Calculator.
The calculator takes into account the basic needs a family of varying sizes may have, like food, housing, child care, and transportation, to determine how much a worker must earn hourly to be “self-sufficient.” Estimated living wages are available for all 50 states, their counties, and major metro areas.
A Nexstar analysis found that, based on MIT’s calculations, a $15 an hour rate isn’t enough for a single adult, working 40 hours a week every week, to cover their basic needs in any state. The closest is West Virginia, where an hourly wage of $19.43 would suffice.
It also wouldn’t be enough for a family of four, with both adults working, to be self-sufficient in any state. Mississippi has the lowest hourly rate necessary for both adults at $22.43 an hour.
In 15 states and the District of Columbia, meanwhile, the Living Wage Calculator found that for the same family, both adults would have to be earning $30 an hour or more to cover the same basic needs. In Massachusetts, an hourly living wage for two adults with two children is $37.71, according to MIT’s calculator.
Other states where the living wage is double the proposed federal minimum wage are: Alaska, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Oregon, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington. A recent study found that a family of four would need an annual household income of more than $200,000 to live comfortably in 43 states — that equates to both adults earning more than $40 an hour, before taxes and other withholdings.
The situation is vastly better for adults considered to be a “DINK”: dual-income, no kids.
In 18 states, a household comprised of two adults who are both working, the pair could cover their needs while both earning under $15 an hour. According to MIT’s Living Wage Calculator, Arkansas has the lowest necessary rate at $13.59 an hour. Close behind is West Virginia at $13.60.
Other states where the estimated living wage for two working adults falls below $15 an hour include: Alabama, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, South Carolina, South Dakota, and Wisconsin.
An hourly wage of $15 is nearly enough in Texas, where DINKs require $15.04 an hour to cover their basic needs.
These calculations are estimates, and every family’s situation is different.
A working couple with no kids in the Little Rock, Arkansas, area, for example, has a living wage rate of $13.90 an hour, which is higher than the state average. The same couple in Hot Springs, Arkansas, would each need to earn at least $13.36 an hour, more than 20 cents below the state average.
According to the data produced by MIT’s Living Wage Calculator, no state’s minimum wage is enough to be considered a living wage for a single working adult, DINKs, or a family of four where both adults are working.
In the District of Columbia, however, the current minimum wage is higher than the living wage outlined for a dual-income, no-kids household. MIT’s Living Wage Calculator estimates DINKs in the nation’s capital may need an hourly wage of only $17.01. The minimum wage in D.C. is $17.50 an hour, and will increase to $17.95 an hour on July 1.
Several of the nation’s largest metros have higher minimum wages than their respective states. In Denver, the minimum hourly wage is $18.81, $4 higher than the state’s $14.81 rate and nearly 50 cents higher than the estimated living wage for DINKs living in the city.
You can find the estimated living wage for your region at MIT’s Living Wage Calculator.
Will the federal minimum wage increase this year?
The bill has bipartisan support, with Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) and Sen. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) cosponsoring the legislation.
The GOP-controlled House and Senate, though, have also been focused on Trump’s priority legislation.
President Donald Trump previously referred to the current rate of $7.25 an hour as a “low number” in December, but the White House declined to comment on Hawley’s proposed legislation to The Hill earlier this month.
