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HB336 • 2026

AN ACT relating to the establishment of minimum wages by local governments.

AN ACT relating to the establishment of minimum wages by local governments.

Labor
Passed Legislature

This bill passed both chambers and reached final enrollment, even if later executive action is not shown here.

Sponsor
C. Aull
Last action
2026-01-21
Official status
01/21/26: to Local Government (H)
Effective date
Not listed

Plain English Breakdown

Using official source text because the generated explanation was unavailable or could not be confirmed against the official bill text.

AN ACT relating to the establishment of minimum wages by local governments.

AN ACT relating to the establishment of minimum wages by local governments.

What This Bill Does

  • AN ACT relating to the establishment of minimum wages by local governments.

Limits and Unknowns

  • This entry is temporarily using official source text because the generated explanation could not be confirmed against the official bill text during the last sync.

Bill History

  1. 2026-01-21 Kentucky Legislative Research Commission

    to Local Government (H)

  2. 2026-01-13 Kentucky Legislative Research Commission

    introduced in House to Committee on Committees (H)

Official Summary Text

AN ACT relating to the establishment of minimum wages by local governments.

Current Bill Text

Read the full stored bill text
UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 299
Page 1 of 2
XXXX 11/21/2025 10:30 AM Jacketed
AN ACT relating to the establishment of minimum wages by local governments. 1
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Kentucky: 2
Section 1. KRS 65.016 is amended to read as follows: 3
(1) The legislative body of any city, county, consolidated local government, urban -4
county government, charter county government, or unified local government shall 5
not have the authority to require any employer to pay to an employee a certain wage 6
or fringe benefit other than as determined by the employer , except as provided in 7
subsection (2) of this section. 8
(2) The legislative body of any city, county, urban -county government, consolidated 9
local government, charter county government, or unified local government may 10
adopt and enforce an ordinance that requires a minimum wage that is greater 11
than the level established by subsection (1)(a) of Section 2 of this Act. 12
Section 2. KRS 337.275 is amended to read as follows: 13
(1) Except as may otherwise be provided by this chapter, every employer shall pay to 14
each of his or her employees wages at a rate of: 15
(a) [ ]Not less than [five dollars and eighty -five cents ($5.85) an hour beginning 16
on June 26, 2007, not less than six dollars and fifty -five cents ($6.55) an hour 17
beginning July 1, 2008, and not less than ] seven dollars and twenty-five cents 18
($7.25) an hour[ beginning July 1, 2009]; or 19
(b) If the legislative body of the city, county, urban -county government, 20
consolidated local government, charter county government, or unified local 21
government where the employer is located has adopted an ordinance that 22
requires a minimum wage g reater than that established by paragraph (a) of 23
this subsection pursuant to the authority granted by Section 1 of this Act, 24
not less than the minimum wage established by the legislative body. If both 25
the legislative body of a county or a merged government and the legislative 26
body of a city within that county have adopted an ordinance under the 27
UNOFFICIAL COPY 26 RS BR 299
Page 2 of 2
XXXX 11/21/2025 10:30 AM Jacketed
authority granted by Section 1 of this Act, then the provisions of the 1
ordinance establishing the highest minimum wage shall prevail within the 2
boundaries of the city. 3
If the federal minimum hourly wage as prescribed by 29 U.S.C. sec. 206(a)(1) is 4
increased in excess of the minimum hourly wage in effect under this subsection, the 5
minimum hourly wage under this subsection shall be increased to the same amount, 6
effective on the same date as the federal minimum hourly wage rate. If the state 7
minimum hourly wage is increased to the federal minimum hourly wage, it shall 8
include only the federal minimum hourly rate prescribed in 29 U.S.C. sec. 206(a)(1) 9
and shall not include other wage rates or conditions, exclusions, or exceptions to the 10
federal minimum hourly wage rate. In addition, the increase to the federal minimum 11
hourly wage rate does not extend or modify the scope or coverage of the minimum 12
wage rate required under this chapter. 13
(2) Notwithstanding the provisions of subsection (1) of this section, for any employee 14
engaged in an occupation in which he or she customarily and regularly receives 15
more than thirty dollars ($30) per month in tips from patrons or others, the 16
employer may pay as a minimum not less than the hourly wage rate required to be 17
paid a tipped employee under the federal minimum hourly wage law as prescribed 18
by 29 U.S.C. sec. 203. The employer shall establish by his or her records that for 19
each week where credit is taken, when adding tips received to wages paid, not less 20
than the minimum rate prescribed in 29 U.S.C. sec. 203 was received by the 21
employee. No employer shall use all or part of any tips or gratuities received by 22
employees toward the payment of the statutory minimum hourly wage as required 23
by 29 U.S.C. sec. 203. Nothing, however, shall prevent employees from entering 24
into an agreement to divide tips or gratuities among themselves. 25