Kourtney Burdick is the League’s deputy general counsel. She can
be reached at kburdick@cacities.org.
In response to the rising cost of living in California, 21 cities
have enacted living wage ordinances (LWOs). Included in this
group are large cities such as Los Angeles, San Francisco,
Sacramento and Oakland; small cities such as Sonoma and Fair-fax;
and medium-sized cities like Berkeley.1 These
ordinances vary in some respects, but in general, their purpose
is the same: They set a wage requirement that is higher — often
much higher — than federal and state minimum wages.2
