Steven Horsford Spearheads Bill to Strengthen Protections for Nevada’s Tipped Workers

Horsford’s new Tip Income Protection and Improvement Act compliments his long-fought push to permanently eliminate taxes on tips. Unlike Horsford’s proposal, Republicans’ Big, Ugly Bill offers a temporary solution while giving permanent tax breaks to billionaires – paid for by kicking more than 100,000 Nevadans off their health care.

REMINDER: Nevada’s economy has taken a beating since Trump took office. Las Vegas is “shed[ding] jobs” due to fewer international visitors who are turned off by the Administration’s harsh rhetoric and tariffs. The state is also bracing for Republicans’ new tax on gambling losses – a cudgel that could drive gamblers offshore, jeopardize local businesses, and put thousands of Nevada jobs at risk.

Read more about Horsford’s newest push to protect tipped workers:

8 News Now: Nevada congressman introduces bill targeting tipped wage reform

• The bill stems from conversations with the Culinary Union, which urged Horsford to pursue permanent changes after what they describe as months of falling visitor numbers, reduced hours, and smaller paychecks—a trend union leaders have dubbed the “Trump Slump.”
• Ted Pappageorge, the Culinary Union’s secretary-treasurer, said many workers were skeptical of previous federal promises about relieving taxes on tips, especially after the tax credit included in the recent “Big Ugly Bill” proved temporary and complicated. He argued that a policy meant to help working families shouldn’t be riddled with loopholes or uncertainty.
• Pappageorge said the new act would address several weaknesses in existing law, including the treatment of automatic gratuities and the so‑called marriage penalty that limits benefits for couples who both earn tipped income.
• If passed, the TIP Improvement Act would eliminate the federal subminimum tipped wage, raise the deduction cap for joint filers from $25,000 to $50,000, allow workers to use a verified TIN to claim the deduction, and add guardrails preventing employers or related parties from claiming tax breaks intended for employees.
• It would also ensure that automatic gratuities count as tips when passed on to workers and make the deduction permanent by removing the current 2028 expiration date. The changes would take effect for tax years beginning after December 31, 2025.
• Horsford said the bill is part of his broader effort to modernize federal tipped‑wage policy and ensure tax changes benefit the workers they’re intended to help.