Mayor Bowser’s latest budget proposal calls for the complete repeal of Initiative 82, which would have phased-out and eventually abolished the Tipped Wage Credit in the District.
FAIRFAX, VA – The Virginia Restaurant Lodging and Travel Association (VRLTA) is grateful and excited to note that the Budget bill proposed by Washington D.C. Muriel Mayor Bowser to City Council calls for the eventual complete repeal of Initiative 82. Instituted in 2020, Initiative 82 would have led to the end of the tipped wage in DC, and had already been leading to the closure of many DC restaurants.
Initiative 82, which District voters passed in 2022, is a phased plan to escalate mandatory minimum wages for previously-tipped employees, eventually would have culminating in its complete abolition. The Initiative has been blamed for a massive wave of restaurant closures in DC, alongside flagging consumer sentiment.
The Mayor’s Budget will now begin the formal adoption process through the full DC City Council, and VRLTA will be engaged as it works its way toward its final vote later this Summer.
“This is a massive win for DC restaurants, their teams, and their customers,” says Eric Terry, President of the VRLTA. ”While well-intended, Initiative 82 has been at the root of a great amount of strife in the DC restaurant community, leading to the closure of many beloved restaurants in the District. Restaurant operators, restaurant workers, and restaurant customers united to bring the pressure that resulted in this all-around win. VRLTA has been at the forefront of fighting these destructive, misguided proposals in Virginia in the past, and we are delighted to see DC take this step for the good of their diners and servers.”
The Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington has been a tireless advocate on this issue since the very beginning. The operators and servers of RAMW were instrumental in making the case to our customers and to our elected leaders for restoring the tipped wage credit.