# 119-s-1115: Paycheck Fairness Act

119-s-1115, Paycheck Fairness Act, is a 119th Congress bill sponsored by Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA] (D-WA); status introduced; PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2025-12-21).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1115
- As of: 2025-12-21
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: 119-s-1115
- Congress: 119
- Title: Paycheck Fairness Act
- Status: introduced
- Introduced: 2025-03-25
- Sponsor: Sen. Murray, Patty [D-WA] (D-WA)
- Cosponsors: 46
- Policy area: Labor and Employment
- Touches household money: yes
- Last recorded action: 2025-12-21

## Summary

**Stronger enforcement against sex-based wage discrimination.** This bill would tighten legal remedies, expand pay-data reporting, and fund training and grants to help close persistent pay gaps between men and women. - Workers: Would expand protections so employees can discuss pay without retaliation and pursue compensatory and, for willful misconduct, punitive damages. It also narrows the employer "bona fide factor" defense so pay differences must be job-related and business-necessary. - Employers: Private firms with 100 or more employees would face new pay-data reporting requirements by sex, race, and ethnicity and public disclosure of aggregated results by industry, occupation, and metro area. - Federal contractors and agencies: The Office of Federal Contract Compliance Programs would restart and expand contractor pay surveys and must annually select not less than half of nonconstruction contractor establishments to report. The Bureau of Labor Statistics would continue tracking women in its employment survey. - Training, grants, and outreach: The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and OFCCP must receive training funded by appropriations. A new competitive Negotiation Skills Training grant program would fund entities to teach pay negotiation and report on outcomes.

## Cosponsors (46)

- Sen. Sanders, Bernard [I-VT] (I-VT), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Alsobrooks, Angela D. [D-MD] (D-MD), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Baldwin, Tammy [D-WI] (D-WI), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Bennet, Michael F. [D-CO] (D-CO), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Blumenthal, Richard [D-CT] (D-CT), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Blunt Rochester, Lisa [D-DE] (D-DE), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Booker, Cory A. [D-NJ] (D-NJ), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Cantwell, Maria [D-WA] (D-WA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Coons, Christopher A. [D-DE] (D-DE), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Cortez Masto, Catherine [D-NV] (D-NV), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Duckworth, Tammy [D-IL] (D-IL), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Durbin, Richard J. [D-IL] (D-IL), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Fetterman, John [D-PA] (D-PA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Gallego, Ruben [D-AZ] (D-AZ), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Gillibrand, Kirsten E. [D-NY] (D-NY), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Hassan, Margaret Wood [D-NH] (D-NH), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Heinrich, Martin [D-NM] (D-NM), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Hickenlooper, John W. [D-CO] (D-CO), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Hirono, Mazie K. [D-HI] (D-HI), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Kaine, Tim [D-VA] (D-VA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Kelly, Mark [D-AZ] (D-AZ), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Kim, Andy [D-NJ] (D-NJ), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. King, Angus S., Jr. [I-ME] (I-ME), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Klobuchar, Amy [D-MN] (D-MN), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Luján, Ben Ray [D-NM] (D-NM), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Markey, Edward J. [D-MA] (D-MA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Merkley, Jeff [D-OR] (D-OR), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Murphy, Christopher [D-CT] (D-CT), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Ossoff, Jon [D-GA] (D-GA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Padilla, Alex [D-CA] (D-CA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Peters, Gary C. [D-MI] (D-MI), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Reed, Jack [D-RI] (D-RI), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Rosen, Jacky [D-NV] (D-NV), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Schatz, Brian [D-HI] (D-HI), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Schiff, Adam B. [D-CA] (D-CA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Schumer, Charles E. [D-NY] (D-NY), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Shaheen, Jeanne [D-NH] (D-NH), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Slotkin, Elissa [D-MI] (D-MI), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Smith, Tina [D-MN] (D-MN), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Van Hollen, Chris [D-MD] (D-MD), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Warner, Mark R. [D-VA] (D-VA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Warnock, Raphael G. [D-GA] (D-GA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Warren, Elizabeth [D-MA] (D-MA), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Welch, Peter [D-VT] (D-VT), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Whitehouse, Sheldon [D-RI] (D-RI), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z
- Sen. Wyden, Ron [D-OR] (D-OR), 2025-03-25T00:00:00.000Z

## Provisions PRIA read

- Stronger pay rights for workers: benefit, high. If enacted, this bill would give workers stronger pay-discrimination rights and new pay-transparency rules. Employees who win could get compensatory damages and, if an employer acted with malice or reckless indifference, punitive damages (the United States would not face punitive damages). Workers…
- Employer pay reporting and contractor surveys: benefit, medium. If enacted, the EEOC would start collecting yearly, detailed pay and employment data by sex, race, and ethnicity for each 12-month period. That reporting would begin not later than 18 months after the law takes effect and apply to private employers with 100 or more employees (and certain contractor…
- Programs and awards to reduce pay gaps: benefit, low. If enacted, the Department of Labor would run grants, training, research, and recognition programs to address pay gaps. The bill would authorize competitive grants for negotiation-skills training and require the Secretary to report to Congress within 18 months and annually. The Department would pub…
- Immigration obligations preserved for employers: cost, low. If enacted, the bill would not change existing immigration law. Employers and employees would still need to follow all immigration rules and remain subject to the current penalties, fines, or sanctions. This rule of construction takes effect six months after enactment.

## Related bills

- 119-s-5108: Right to IVF Act of 2026
- 119-s-1503: Equality Act
- 119-s-2150: Women’s Health Protection Act of 2025
- 119-s-2523: John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2025
- 119-s-3214: Background Check Expansion Act
- 119-s-3071: Keep SNAP and WIC Funded Act of 2025

## Sources
- [119-s-1115 on Congress.gov](https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/senate-bill/1115)

## Related
- [119-s-5108: Right to IVF Act of 2026](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-5108)
- [119-s-1503: Equality Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1503)
- [119-s-2150: Women’s Health Protection Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2150)
- [119-s-2523: John R. Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-2523)
- [119-s-3214: Background Check Expansion Act](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3214)
- [119-s-3071: Keep SNAP and WIC Funded Act of 2025](https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-3071)
- [All bills in Congress](https://policyrisk.com/legislation)

Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/legislation/119-s-1115 (as of 2025-12-21).