Three Chicago-area members of Congress, Reps. Jonathan Jackson, Jesús “Chuy” García and Delia Ramirez, rolled out the Living Wage For All Act on Tuesday, April 28, 2026, pitching a new federal minimum wage of $25 an hour. Announced at a press event on the steps of the U.S. Capitol, the proposal was framed as a direct response to stubbornly high housing, grocery and health-care costs and would set a national wage floor far above today’s federal and most state minimums.
The measure builds on the Fight for $15 movement and arrived with backing from labor and civil-rights groups along with a roster of progressive cosponsors. According to a press release from Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García’s office, the bill is designed so that large, highly profitable employers move first, while smaller employers get more time to adjust. Sponsors say it would also scrap subminimum wages for tipped workers, youth workers and workers with disabilities, and then tie future increases to broader wage growth so the floor does not fall behind again.
What the Bill Would Do
The Living Wage For All Act sets up a two-track phase-in schedule. Large employers would see stepped increases beginning Jan. 1, 2026 and would reach $25.00 by Jan. 1, 2031. Other employers would follow a slower ladder that does not hit $25.00 until Jan. 1, 2038. After that, the minimum would be pegged to two-thirds of the national median hourly wage so the baseline moves with the economy instead of sitting frozen for years. The bill's official text spells out the detailed year-by-year schedule and defines "large employer" by revenue or employee count, and readers are directed to the bill's text for the full timeline and legal language.
Chicago and State Context
Chicago is already operating above the federal minimum. The city's labor notice lists a $16.60 baseline effective July 1, 2025, and Illinois reached a statewide $15.00 minimum on Jan. 1, 2025. The federal minimum, by contrast, has been stuck at $7.25 since 2009. The U.S. Department of Labor's consolidated table shows the District of Columbia at $17.95 and Washington state at $17.13 as of Jan. 1, 2026. Those figures highlight how aggressive a $25 national floor would be, even compared with current high-water marks in relatively high-wage cities and states.
How It Is Being Received
On the Capitol steps, sponsors leaned hard on the affordability argument and the gap between paychecks and basic costs. "Minimum wage is not a living wage. That’s not right," Rep. Ramirez said, casting the bill as a bid to restore workers' purchasing power. Critics have warned about potential economic blowback. Local coverage quoted Bryce Hill of the Illinois Policy Institute, who argued that a jump to $25 could cut into job opportunities and put significant strain on small businesses. With labor and civil-rights organizations lined up on one side and business and fiscal skeptics on the other, the proposal is functioning as both a policy blueprint and a rallying banner.
What Is Next
The bill's filing date appears in the official record in mid-April, with sponsors staging the public rollout on April 28. If the measure advances, it will move to House committees for hearings, analysis and potential scoring. Even with long odds of passing in this Congress, sponsors and allied unions are treating it as an effort to reset the national conversation and to offer a federal template for states and cities that want to push their own minimums higher. The bill's full text is publicly available for readers who want to dig into the primary source material.
Sources: Rep. Jesús “Chuy” García; Rep. Delia Ramirez; U.S. Department of Labor; FOX 32 Chicago; City of Chicago.
