Minimum Wage Fairness Act

Minimum Wage Fairness Act - Amends the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (FLSA) to increase the federal minimum wage for employees to: (1) $8.20 an hour beginning on the first day of the sixth month after the enactment of this Act, (2) $9.15 an hour beginning one year after the date of such initial increase, (3) $10.10 an hour beginning two years after such date, and (4) the amount determined by the Secretary of Labor (based on increases in the Consumer Price Index) beginning three years after such date and annually thereafter.

Increases the federal minimum wage for tipped employees to $3.00 an hour for one year beginning on the first day of the sixth month after the enactment of this Act. Provides a formula for subsequent annual adjustments of the minimum wage for tipped employees until it equals 70% of the wage in effect under FLSA for other employees.

Directs the Secretary of Labor, 60 days before any increase in the minimum wage, to publish it in the Federal Register and on the Department of Labor's website.

Amends the Internal Revenue Code to extend through taxable years beginning before 2017: (1) the increase to $500,000 of the expensing allowance for business assets, including computer software; and (2) the treatment of qualified real property (i.e., leasehold improvement property, restaurant property, and retail improvement property) as depreciable business property.

[Congressional Bills 113th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 2223 Placed on Calendar Senate (PCS)]

                                                       Calendar No. 354
113th CONGRESS
  2d Session
                                S. 2223

To provide for an increase in the Federal minimum wage and to amend the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend increased expensing limitations 
  and the treatment of certain real property as section 179 property.


_______________________________________________________________________


                   IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES

                             April 8, 2014

   Mr. Harkin (for himself, Mr. Merkley, Mr. Reid, Mr. Sanders, Ms. 
 Baldwin, Mr. Murphy, Mr. Markey, Mr. Blumenthal, Mrs. Gillibrand, Mr. 
Casey, Mr. Bennet, Mr. Leahy, Ms. Stabenow, Mr. Schatz, Mr. Booker, Ms. 
Klobuchar, Mr. Levin, Mr. Heinrich, Mrs. Boxer, Mrs. Hagan, Mr. Begich, 
  and Ms. Heitkamp) introduced the following bill; which was read the 
                               first time

                             April 9, 2014

            Read the second time and placed on the calendar

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
To provide for an increase in the Federal minimum wage and to amend the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend increased expensing limitations 
  and the treatment of certain real property as section 179 property.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Minimum Wage Fairness Act''.

SEC. 2. MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES.

    (a) Minimum Wage.--
            (1) In general.--Section 6(a)(1) of the Fair Labor 
        Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 206(a)(1)) is amended to read 
        as follows:
            ``(1) except as otherwise provided in this section, not 
        less than--
                    ``(A) $8.20 an hour, beginning on the first day of 
                the sixth month that begins after the date of enactment 
                of the Minimum Wage Fairness Act;
                    ``(B) $9.15 an hour, beginning 1 year after that 
                first day;
                    ``(C) $10.10 an hour, beginning 2 years after that 
                first day; and
                    ``(D) beginning on the date that is 3 years after 
                that first day, and annually thereafter, the amount 
                determined by the Secretary pursuant to subsection 
                (h);''.
            (2) Determination based on increase in the consumer price 
        index.--Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 
        U.S.C. 206) is amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(h)(1) Each year, by not later than the date that is 90 days 
before a new minimum wage determined under subsection (a)(1)(D) is to 
take effect, the Secretary shall determine the minimum wage to be in 
effect pursuant to this subsection for the subsequent 1-year period. 
The wage determined pursuant to this subsection for a year shall be--
            ``(A) not less than the amount in effect under subsection 
        (a)(1) on the date of such determination;
            ``(B) increased from such amount by the annual percentage 
        increase in the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and 
        Clerical Workers (United States city average, all items, not 
        seasonally adjusted), or its successor publication, as 
        determined by the Bureau of Labor Statistics; and
            ``(C) rounded to the nearest multiple of $0.05.
    ``(2) In calculating the annual percentage increase in the Consumer 
Price Index for purposes of paragraph (1)(B), the Secretary shall 
compare such Consumer Price Index for the most recent month, quarter, 
or year available (as selected by the Secretary prior to the first year 
for which a minimum wage is in effect pursuant to this subsection) with 
the Consumer Price Index for the same month in the preceding year, the 
same quarter in the preceding year, or the preceding year, 
respectively.''.
    (b) Base Minimum Wage for Tipped Employees.--Section 3(m)(1) of the 
Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 (29 U.S.C. 203(m)(1)) is amended to 
read as follows:
            ``(1) the cash wage paid such employee, which for purposes 
        of such determination shall be not less than--
                    ``(A) for the 1-year period beginning on the first 
                day of the sixth month that begins after the date of 
                enactment of the Minimum Wage Fairness Act, $3.00 an 
                hour;
                    ``(B) for each succeeding 1-year period until the 
                hourly wage under this paragraph equals 70 percent of 
                the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for such 
                period, an hourly wage equal to the amount determined 
                under this paragraph for the preceding year, increased 
                by the lesser of--
                            ``(i) $0.95; or
                            ``(ii) the amount necessary for the wage in 
                        effect under this paragraph to equal 70 percent 
                        of the wage in effect under section 6(a)(1) for 
                        such period, rounded to the nearest multiple of 
                        $0.05; and
                    ``(C) for each succeeding 1-year period after the 
                year in which the hourly wage under this paragraph 
                first equals 70 percent of the wage in effect under 
                section 6(a)(1) for the same period, the amount 
                necessary to ensure that the wage in effect under this 
                paragraph remains equal to 70 percent of the wage in 
                effect under section 6(a)(1), rounded to the nearest 
                multiple of $0.05; and''.
    (c) Publication of Notice.--Section 6 of the Fair Labor Standards 
Act of 1938 (as amended by subsection (a)) (29 U.S.C. 206) is further 
amended by adding at the end the following:
    ``(i) Not later than 60 days prior to the effective date of any 
increase in the minimum wage determined under subsection (h) or 
required for tipped employees in accordance with subparagraph (B) or 
(C) of section 3(m)(1), as amended by the Minimum Wage Fairness Act, 
the Secretary shall publish in the Federal Register and on the website 
of the Department of Labor a notice announcing the adjusted required 
wage.''.
    (d) Effective Date.--The amendments made by subsections (a) and (b) 
shall take effect on the first day of the sixth month that begins after 
the date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 3. EXTENSION OF INCREASED EXPENSING LIMITATIONS AND TREATMENT OF 
              CERTAIN REAL PROPERTY AS SECTION 179 PROPERTY.

    (a) In General.--
            (1) Dollar limitation.--Section 179(b)(1) of the Internal 
        Revenue Code of 1986 is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``in 2010, 2011, 2012, or 2013'' in 
                subparagraph (B) and inserting ``after 2009 and before 
                2017'', and
                    (B) by striking ``2013'' in subparagraph (C) and 
                inserting ``2016''.
            (2) Reduction in limitation.--Section 179(b)(2) of such 
        Code is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``in 2010, 2011, 2012, or 2013'' in 
                subparagraph (B) and inserting ``after 2009 and before 
                2017'', and
                    (B) by striking ``2013'' in subparagraph (C) and 
                inserting ``2016''.
    (b) Computer Software.--Section 179(d)(1)(A)(ii) of the Internal 
Revenue Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``2014'' and inserting 
``2017''.
    (c) Election.--Section 179(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code of 
1986 is amended by striking ``2014'' and inserting ``2017''.
    (d) Special Rules for Treatment of Qualified Real Property.--
            (1) In general.--Section 179(f)(1) of the Internal Revenue 
        Code of 1986 is amended by striking ``in 2010, 2011, 2012, or 
        2013'' and inserting ``after 2009 and before 2017''.
            (2) Carryover limitation.--
                    (A) In general.--Section 179(f)(4) of such Code is 
                amended by striking ``2013'' each place it appears and 
                inserting ``2016''.
                    (B) Conforming amendment.--The heading of 
                subparagraph (C) of section 179(f)(4) of such Code is 
                amended by striking ``2010, 2011 and 2012'' and 
                inserting ``years before 2016''.
    (e) Effective Date.--The amendments made by this section shall 
apply to taxable years beginning after December 31, 2013.
                                                       Calendar No. 354

113th CONGRESS

  2d Session

                                S. 2223

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL

To provide for an increase in the Federal minimum wage and to amend the 
Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to extend increased expensing limitations 
  and the treatment of certain real property as section 179 property.

_______________________________________________________________________

                             April 9, 2014

            Read the second time and placed on the calendar