State preemption laws legally block the Philadelphia City Council from raising the federal minimum wage locally. By the numbers:Pennsylvania remains fixed to the federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. New Jersey's minimum wage increased to $15.92 an hour this year, while Delaware has also left Pennsylvania behind with a minimum wage of $15 an hour. Federal baselineBig picture view:The federal minimum wage was set to $7.25 in 2009 and hasn't moved a cent in 17 years. Pennsylvania is currently one of about 20 states that still default to the federal wage, making it an outlier in the otherwise high-paying Northeast corridor.