H.R. 720·High School Beginner
A Bill to Raise the Federal Minimum Wage to $15
Rep. Walker (D-NC)
Phases the federal minimum wage to $15 per hour over 4 years.
Sec. 1 — Mandate
The federal minimum wage shall rise to $11 in year 1, $13 in year 2, and $15 in year 4 after enactment.
Sec. 2 — Indexing
Beginning year 5, the minimum wage shall index to CPI.
Sec. 3 — Funding
No appropriation; private-sector cost.
Sec. 4 — Enforcement
Department of Labor wage and hour authority.
Tournament Prep
Mechanical parts, sourced & timed
Use this as your pre-round checklist. Memorize the source citation. Time yourself to the delivery target.
- Bill / Number
- H.R. 720 — A Bill to Raise the Federal Minimum Wage to $15
- Funding source
- Private-sector cost; no federal appropriation.
- Timeline
- 4-year phase-in.
- Realistic — Washington, California, NY already phased to $15+.
- Enforcing agency
- Department of Labor Wage and Hour Division.
- Yes — FLSA enforcement.
- Penalty for non-compliance
- Back wages + liquidated damages under FLSA §16.
- Source citation
- CBO (2021), 'The Budgetary Effects of the Raise the Wage Act of 2021' — cbo.gov.
- Delivery time (read aloud)
- 1:05 (65s)
Strongest counter-argument
CBO (2021) estimated 1.4M job losses from a $15 minimum.
Your pre-emptive answer
CBO's same report projected 27M workers receiving raises and 900K lifted from poverty. The net welfare calculation favors raising it. And subsequent natural experiments (Seattle, NYC) showed CBO's job-loss estimates ran high by ~50%.