Report on the Impact of Past and Future Minimum Wage Increases.

Sec. 802. Report on the Impact of Past and Future Minimum Wage Increases. (a) In General.—Section 8104 of the U.S. Troop Readiness, Veterans’ Care, Katrina Recovery, and Iraq Accountability Appropriations Act, 2007 (Public Law 110–28; 121 Stat. 189) is amended to read as follows:“SEC. 8104. REPORT ON THE IMPACT OF PAST AND FUTURE MINIMUM WAGE INCREASES.“(a) Study.—Beginning on the date that is 60 days after the date of enactment of this Act, and every year thereafter until the minimum wage in the respective territory is $7.25 per hour, the Government Accountability Office shall conduct a study to—“(1) assess the impact of the minimum wage increases that occurred in American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands in 2007 and 2008, as required under Public Law 110–28, on the rates of employment and the living standards of workers, with full consideration of the other factors that impact rates of employment and the living standards of workers such as inflation in the cost of food, energy, and other commodities; and“(2) estimate the impact of any further wage increases on rates of employment and the living standards of workers in American Samoa and the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, with full consideration of the other factors that may impact the rates of employment and the living standards of workers, including assessing how the profitability of major private sector firms may be impacted by wage increases in comparison to other factors such as energy costs and the value of tax benefits.“(b) Report.—No earlier than March 15, 2010, and not later than April 15, 2010, the Government Accountability Office shall transmit its first report to Congress concerning the findings of 123 STAT. 187 the study required under subsection (a). The Government Accountability Office shall transmit any subsequent reports to Congress concerning the findings of a study required by subsection (a) between March 15 and April 15 of each year.“(c) Economic Information.—To provide sufficient economic data for the conduct of the study under subsection (a) the Bureau of the Census of the Department of Commerce shall include and separately report on American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the Virgin Islands in its County Business Patterns data with the same regularity and to the same extent as each Bureau collects and reports such data for the 50 States. In the event that the inclusion of American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and the Virgin Islands in such surveys and data compilations requires time to structure and implement, the Bureau of the Census shall in the interim annually report the best available data that can feasibly be secured with respect to such territories. Such interim report shall describe the steps the Bureau will take to improve future data collection in the territories to achieve comparability with the data collected in the United States. The Bureau of the Census, together with the Department of the Interior, shall coordinate their efforts to achieve such improvements.” .(b) Effective Date.—The amendment made by this section shall take effect on the date of enactment of this Act.