Congresswoman Dina Titus today introduced the Labor Income Fairness and Transparency Act (LIFT Act) to raise the minimum wage and all Fair Labor Standards Act subminimum wages to $17 per hour over the next three years with annual increases after that, provide income protections for tipped workers, and expand the Earned Income Tax Credit to cover more workers.

“This legislation is a fair way to increase the take-home pay of both tipped employees and employees who do not receive tips, giving all hospitality and other workers a needed boost in meeting an increasing cost of living. It also will protect tipped workers from unjustified employer deductions from their tips,” Congresswoman Titus said. “These measures are necessary to help employees afford their rent, support their children, and pay their medical bills.”

The LIFT Act would protect the incomes of tipped workers by requiring employers to provide a notice of tips received by an employee each day they work. It would prohibit managers from withholding tips to cover the cost of processing a tip. It would increase civil penalties for tip violations to equal those for other violations of the Fair Labor Standards Act.

The LIFT Act also prohibits Wage and Hour investigators at the Department of Labor from being subjected to reductions in force, establishes a grant program for states and localities to improve enforcement and compliance with wage laws, and creates a Department of Labor National Advisory Committee on the Hospitality Industry.

Further, benefiting all families, the LIFT Act would permanently extend changes to the Earned Income Tax Credit made by Congress during the COVID pandemic. These include increasing the maximum credit amount for workers without children, increasing the income threshold for earning the credit, and expanding the age range for eligible workers for those without children to include those 19-24 and over 65. It would also raise the maximum EITC for workers without children from $530 to $1,500, and the income cap for these adults to qualify from about $16,000 to at least $21,000.

“The Earned Income Tax Credit was changed to provide needed relief for workers who have not benefitted as much as they should have from the credit,” Congresswoman Titus said. “Making these changes permanent will make a big difference in the lives of millions of lower-paid American workers.”

The LIFT Act has been endorsed by One Fair Wage.

“Cutting taxes on tips might make for a good soundbite, but on its own, it’s a hollow fix that ignores the real crisis: wages so low that two-thirds of restaurant workers don’t even earn enough to pay federal income taxes,” said Saru Jayaraman, Cofounder and President of One Fair Wage. “In a time of skyrocketing costs, workers are drowning and need more than political gimmicks—they need a raise. Tips should be a bonus, not a substitute for a living wage. By ending all subminimum wages and requiring that all workers be paid a full livable wage with tips on top, the LIFT Act addresses what working people need most: a fair wage, a level playing field, and the dignity that comes with being able to provide for their families.”