The Washington, D.C., city council backpedaled on Initiative 82, voting Monday night to trim wage increases for tipped workers after Democrat Mayor Muriel Bowser and the city's restaurant industry called for the 2022 ballot measure to be repealed entirely.

National Review reported Tuesday that the Democrat-controlled city council amended I-82 to restore the tipped credit and scale back its wage increases to 75% of D.C.'s minimum wage by 2034.

The governing body's move follows its vote last month to pause the wage increase set to take effect in July under I-82. Council members reportedly voted to halt the pay increase after restaurant owners and workers spoke out against it, citing the negative impacts on city eateries.

"The negative consequences of eliminating the tip credit are undeniable," Rebekah Paxton, research director at Employment Policies Institute (EPI), told the Review.

"With overwhelming evidence of restaurant job losses, workers' lost tip earnings, and historically high restaurant closures, leaving Initiative 82 as-is was untenable for local restaurants and their employees," Paxton said. "This action by the Council is an important first step in fixing the harm caused by Initiative 82, but the road to true relief will require a full repeal of this misguided policy."

According to the Review, I-82 was set to bring D.C.'s minimum wage for tipped workers up to $15 an hour, which is what non-tipped employees in the city make. When voters passed the ballot measure in November 2022, progressive activists reportedly hailed the outcome as a win.

Bowser and the D.C. restaurant industry worked to repeal I-82 for months due to its central role in creating a crisis among restaurateurs.

Several well-known D.C. eateries blamed the ballot measure for their decision to shut down earlier this year, and a poll conducted by the city's restaurant trade group found that 44% of owners said they were "likely to close" by the end of the year.

The survey also found that 78% of tipped workers experienced customer opposition to increased menu prices, and 71% said they or a colleague had taken a cut in the number of hours they were scheduled to work. Seventy-two percent said higher menu prices had impacted tips, and 54% said they or someone they know had been laid off.

In what is likely an undercount, EPI estimated that I-82 led to the restaurant industry shedding 1,000 jobs. That figure does not take into account staff turnover, reduced shifts, or hiring freezes.

One Fair Wage, a progressive advocacy group that pushed for I-82, accused the D.C. council of selling out to corporate lobbyists and not honoring the results of the 2022 election.

"But instead of honoring the will of the people, council members sided with a corporate lobby that spreads lies and bankrolls influence," One Fair Wage President Saru Jayaraman told the Review. "All options are on the table, including referendum and recall, to reinstate One Fair Wage as required by the will of the voters and workers in D.C."