Pay transparency laws by state and locality
Review current, enacted and proposed pay transparency laws in US states and localities.
Published: May 23, 2024 | Updated: August 2, 2024 | by Emily Scace
In an effort to advance pay equity, a growing number of states and localities have enacted pay transparency laws. These laws typically require employers to share the pay range for a position with applicants, either in the job posting or during the interview and hiring process. In some cases, employees also have the right to learn the pay range for their own role.
The charts below provide a snapshot of current, enacted and proposed pay transparency laws in US states and localities.
In this resource:
What are pay transparency laws?
Pay transparency laws require employers to disclose pay information in job postings, share pay ranges directly with job applicants, or both. This information may include salary ranges, hourly wages, wage scales and other pay information.
Many of these laws require employers to post the wage or salary ranges in job advertisements. Others only require employers to disclose salary ranges during the interviewing and hiring process. Some laws also require employers to disclose information about benefits and other forms of compensation.
State and local pay transparency laws
The following states and localities have a current, enacted or proposed pay transparency law:*
Michigan (proposed)
New Jersey (proposed)
*As of August 2, 2024, there are 21 jurisdictions in the United States where pay transparency laws have been enacted. Additionally, though we make every effort to identify and track all relevant legislation, it may not be entirely exhaustive.
California
Covered employers
Employers with 15 or more employees
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
- Include pay range in any job posting and provide to an applicant upon reasonable request.
- Provide pay range for employee’s current position upon request.
Colorado
Covered employers
Employers with at least one employee in Colorado
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
- Include pay range in any job posting, along with a general description of benefits and other compensation.
- List the date a job application window is expected to close.
- Inform all employees of internal job opportunities on the same day and prior to making a selection decision.
- Share information about selected candidates and how employees may express interest in similar roles within 30 days of the new hire’s start date.
- Share details about regular career progression paths, and associated pay and benefits for each step, with eligible employees.
Connecticut
Covered employers
All employers in Connecticut with at least one employee
Pay range required in job postings?
No
Requirements
Employers must disclose pay range to an applicant upon request or before making an offer of compensation, whichever is earlier.
District of Columbia (Washington DC)
Covered employers
All employers with at least one employee in the District of Columbia, except for the DC and federal governments
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
- Include minimum and maximum projected salary or hourly pay in all postings advertising a job, promotion or transfer opportunity.
- Disclose the existence of healthcare benefits to prospective employees before the first interview.
- Post a notice in the workplace informing employees of their rights under the pay transparency law.
Hawaii
Covered employers
Employers with 50 or more employees
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
- Include an hourly rate or salary range that reasonably reflects expected compensation in job listings.
- Note: Internal job postings for promotions or transfers are excluded and need not include a pay range.
Illinois (effective January 1, 2025)
Covered employers
- Job posting requirements: Employers with 15 or more employees
- Other requirements: All employers
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
- Include a pay scale and benefits description in any posting for a specific position (employers with 15+ employees only).
- Announce, post or otherwise notify current employees of promotion opportunities within 14 days of making an external job posting for the position.
- Inform applicants of the pay scale and benefits for a position upon request and prior to discussing compensation, if a public or internal posting with the information has not been made available.
Indiana (proposed)
H.B. 1046 would require employers to include a pay range in each posting for a job, promotion or transfer opportunity and provide employees with the pay range for their role upon hire, transfer, promotion and the employee’s request.
Maine (proposed)
H.B. 583 would require employers with 10 or more employees to include a pay range in job postings; smaller employers would be required to disclose a pay range to an applicant upon request. All employers would be required to disclose a pay range for a current employee’s position to that employee upon request.
Maryland
Covered employers
All employers in Maryland
Pay range required in job postings?
No
Effective October 1, 2024: Yes
Requirements
- Provide job applicants with the pay range for the position for which the individual applied.
- Effective October 1, 2024: Include a wage range and general description of benefits and other compensation in any posting for a job that will be physically performed at least partly in Maryland.
Massachusetts (effective October 29, 2025)
Covered employers
Employers with 25 or more employees in Massachusetts
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
- Include a pay range in any advertisement or job posting intended to recruit applicants for a specific role.
- Share a pay range with an employee upon request for their current role, and with applicants upon request for a role to which they are applying.
- Share a pay range with an employee offered a promotion or transfer to a new position with different job responsibilities.
Michigan (proposed)
H.B. 5619 would require employers to create a job description for each role that includes salary information and share the job description with an applicant during the recruiting process and with an employee upon request.
Minnesota (effective January 1, 2025)
Covered employers
Employers with 30 or more employees in Minnesota
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
Include a starting salary range and description of benefits and other compensation in any job posting.
Nevada
Covered employers
All employers in Nevada
Pay range required in job postings?
No
Requirements
Provide job applicants who have completed an interview (including for a promotion or transfer) with pay range for the position.
New Jersey (proposed)
New Jersey – Jersey City
Covered employers
Employers with at least five employees within Jersey City
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
Include pay range in any ad for a job, promotion or transfer opportunity.
New York
Covered employers
Employers with four or more employees
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
Include pay range and job description in any ad for a job, promotion or transfer opportunity performed at least partly in New York or reporting to a New York-based office, supervisor or other work site
New York – Albany County
Covered employers
Employers with four or more employees
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
Include pay range in any ad for a job, promotion or transfer opportunity.
New York – Ithaca
Covered employers
Employers with four or more employees whose standard work locations are in the city of Ithaca
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
Include pay range in any ad for a job, promotion or transfer opportunity.
New York – New York City
Covered employers
Employers with four or more employees.
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
Include pay range in any ad for a job, promotion or transfer opportunity that can or will be performed at least partly in New York City.
New York – Westchester County
Covered employers
Employers with four or more employees.
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
Include pay range in any ad for a job, promotion or transfer opportunity required to be performed at least partly in Westchester County.
Ohio – Cincinnati
Covered employers
Employers with 15 or more employees
Pay range required in job postings?
No
Requirements
Provide pay range to applicants who have received a conditional job offer upon reasonable request.
Ohio – Toledo
Covered employers
Employers with 15 or more employees
Pay range required in job postings?
No
Requirements
Provide pay range to applicants who have received a conditional job offer upon reasonable request.
Pennsylvania (proposed)
S.B. 601 would require employers with 15 or more employees to provide a pay range to applicants and candidates for internal transfers and promotions. Employers would also be required to provide employees with a the pay range for their role upon hire and annually thereafter.
Rhode Island
Covered employers
All employers in Rhode Island
Pay range required in job postings?
No
Requirements
- Provide applicant with pay range for the position to which they have applied, upon request and before discussing compensation
- Provide employees with a pay range for the employee’s position at time of hire, upon request and when the employee moves into a new position
Vermont (effective July 1, 2025)
Covered employers
Employers with five or more employees
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
Include a pay range in any written advertisement for a position that is physically located in Vermont, or a remote role that will predominately perform work for a Vermont-based office or work location.
Washington
Covered employers
Employers with 15 or more employers
Pay range required in job postings?
Yes
Requirements
- Include pay range and general description of benefits and other compensation in any job posting.
- Provide pay range upon request to an employee offered an internal transfer or promotion.
West Virginia (proposed)
H.B. 4272 would require employers to provide a pay range and description of benefits and other compensation to an applicant upon request and prohibit employers from inquiring into an applicant’s salary history.
Together, we can build brighter talent experiences
Addressing pay equity and transparency is business imperative. With Gapsquare, you can leverage continuous, trusted insights from your workforce data to achieve fair pay.
About the author
Emily Scace, JD
Senior Legal Editor, Brightmine
Emily Scace has more than a decade of experience in legal publishing. As a member of the Brightmine editorial team, she covers topics including employment discrimination and harassment, pay equity, pay transparency and recruiting and hiring.
Emily holds a Juris Doctor from the University of Connecticut School of Law and a Bachelor of Arts in English and psychology from Northwestern University. Prior to joining Brightmine, she was a senior content specialist at Simplify Compliance. In that role, she covered a variety of workplace health and safety topics, was the editor of the OSHA Compliance Advisor newsletter, and frequently delivered webinars on key issues in workplace safety.