Montgomery County Minimum Wage Increases on July 1 to $15.65 for Large Employers

For Immediate Release: Wednesday, March 9, 2022

The minimum wage will again increase in Montgomery County on July 1. Sponsored by then-County Council member Marc Elrich and signed into legislation on Nov. 17, 2017, Bill 28-17 raises the minimum wage incrementally each July 1.

Based on the Consumer Price Index for all urban wage earners and clerical workers (CPI-W) for the Washington-Baltimore region, the Montgomery County Chief Administrative Officer has set the rate for the increase of minimum wage for July 2022 for large employers (those with 51 employees or more) at $15.65 per hour. After hitting the $15 minimum wage rate last year, the law now requires the Chief Administrative Officer to adjust the rate each year. The change is based on the previous calendar year. Previous years were based on rate of increase determined by the Montgomery County Council to get to $15.

"This is an important next step to ensure that the minimum wage keeps up with inflation,” said County Executive Elrich. “For too long, the minimum wage was stagnant and did not change based on inflation. I was proud to champion the increase in minimum wage when I was a County Councilmember and pleased to see it finally reached $15 per hour for large employers last year, and under the law, once the minimum wage hits $15, it is then increased based on inflation so that low wage workers are not left behind. A decent wage is the path to more opportunity and improved equity."

Effective date	Large employer	Mid-sized employer	Small Employer
July 1, 2022	$15.65	$14.50	$14
July 1, 2023	Increased annually by CPI-W	$15	$14.50

More information will be available about the County’s minimum wage increase as the July 1 implementation date gets closer.

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Release ID: 22-151
Media Contact: Office of Public Information 240-777-6507