Citing poverty concerns in, and the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on, the Aloha State, Hawaiʻi Governor David Ige has signed House Bill 2510, gradually raising the state’s minimum wage to $18.00 per hour on January 1, 2028.

Although, given HB 2510’s nearly six-year phase-in period, other states may reach that mark first, Hawaiʻi nevertheless becomes the first state to officially enact an $18 minimum wage.