Mayor Muriel Bowser wants to repeal Initiative 82, citing restaurants' “increased operational and supply costs, higher rent, and unique labor challenges.” She announced the decision as part of her 2026 budget proposal last week, simultaneously drawing support from the restaurant association and ire from labor advocates.
Almost a hundred union workers protested the move outside the Wilson Building last week, calling on the D.C. Council to not vote against returning to a tipped wage.
What is I-82?
Also known as the District of Columbia Tip Credit Elimination Act, Initiative 82 is a ballot initiative that passed in 2022 with 73% of the vote. But even though citizens overwhelmingly passed I-82, D.C. Council can easily repeal it.
As they’ve done before! In 2018, 55% of voters approved Initiative 77, eliminating the tipped minimum wage, only to have it overturned by the D.C. Council in a 8-5 vote soon after.
What is a tipped minimum wage?
A tipped minimum wage is the base hourly rate paid to employees who typically receive tips, with the expectation that with tips, they’ll either meet or exceed the local minimum wage. Legally, employers are required to make up the difference if employees don’t meet the minimum wage, but often, that doesn’t actually happen. Before I-82, tipped workers in D.C. earned $5.05 per hour.
The city has been slowly increasing the tipped wage so it matches the overall minimum wage by July 2027. It’s set to increase from $10 to $12 on July 1, which critics say will be a “tipping point” for small businesses.
Will DC Council go through with it?
It’s tricky. Washingtonian food editor Jessica Sidman told us that D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson doesn’t think a majority of councilmembers would vote to repeal. But he also called I-82 a mistake and indicated he’d personally be open to rolling it back.
After more than a decade, Brookland’s Finest closed in April. They blamed a number of factors, including I-82. (Deb Lindsey/The Washington Post via Getty Images)
How do stakeholders feel?
Several recently closed restaurants have blamed I-82, but it’s unclear how much responsibility it holds for their economic woes.
“I think there are people it’s helping, and there are people it’s hurting,” says Sidman. “The big question is, I guess: which group is bigger?”
