Eliminating the tipped minimum wage was a mistake. Repeal Initiative 82.

Servers prepare the Tabard Inn Restaurant for service in D.C. on Feb. 11, 2024. (Scott Suchman/for The Washington Post)

One can sympathize with D.C. residents who, in 2022, overwhelmingly voted to eliminate the tipped minimum wage in the city. Proponents sold the measure — known as Initiative 82, which passed with nearly 74 percent of the vote — as a policy to guarantee restaurant servers a “living wage.” Instead, it is proving to be an economic disaster.