Lawmakers vote to boost their pensions (TEXAS)

AUSTIN - While Texans await action on a school finance overhaul and teachers fret about their hemorrhaging retirement fund, state lawmakers quietly voted to increase their own pension pay Monday.

No record vote was taken when the House approved a bill that would automatically boost the already generous retirement benefits of the "elected class" -- the name legislators call themselves and statewide elected officials, including the governor.

Under the bill, a lawmaker with 12 years of service could retire at age 50 and immediately begin collecting $34,500 a year -- a $6,000 increase over current law.

The House sponsor of the legislation, state Rep. Will Hartnett, R-Dallas, said that legislators in particular deserve the retirement boost because their salaries are so low. Lawmakers, deemed part-time, make $7,200 a year, plus $128 a day when they're in session.

"We all work very hard, and we're underpaid. We're all losing money that we could earn in our own professions, and I think it's very appropriate," said Hartnett, a lawyer. "We work extremely hard for basically food-stamp pay."

"When you're talking about the budget itself increasing somewhere between 14 and 20 percent ... is it appropriate to then go to the taxpayer and ask for even more generous retirement benefits than they're already getting?" asked Michael Sullivan, a vice president at the conservative Texas Public Policy Foundation.

The pension enhancements for legislators and statewide officials, including the governor and attorney general, would cost the state more than $4 million a year, officials said.

Sullivan also questioned the indirect way in which lawmakers increase their pensions: State law ties them to a state district judge's salary, which Hartnett's legislation would raise by almost 22 percent.

"If we truly believe the Legislature is not compensated appropriately, then they should be willing to make that direct argument," he said.

The legislation, Senate Bill 368, would increase the pay of a state district judge to $125,000 a year, up from $102,700. State Supreme Court justices' pay would rise to $150,000 a year, up from $113,000.

Only one legislator raised objections about the indirect pension boost during a brief debate on the bill: state Rep. Gene Seaman, R-Corpus Christi. After the bill was approved on a nonrecord "voice" vote, Seaman said he personally did not need the retirement increase and questioned the way it was done.

"Do we have a conflict of interest when we vote for and raise the judiciary and we are at the same time voting ourselves an increased pension?" he said. "I do feel I have a conflict of interest."

To become law, the bill must be approved again by the Senate and signed into law by Republican Gov. Rick Perry -- who would see his own retirement package increase substantially under the legislation.

If Perry retires at the end of his current term, capping 22 years of service in state elected office, he would be eligible to receive an annual pension of $63,250 -- more than an $11,000 increase over what he would get under current law.

But Perry, who could face stiff competition for his job in next year's election, has no intention of going into the employee retirement system anytime soon, an aide said.

"Retirement is not a thought in the governor's mind right now," said Perry spokeswoman Kathy Walt. "This is not something the governor sought, asked for or urged. If it had been a priority of the governor's, you would have heard him talking about it."

The vote to boost pensions comes as lawmakers continue to struggle with the top issue of the waning session -- an overhaul of the strained school finance system. It also comes as the Teacher Retirement System faces a huge financial crunch -- a $12 billion unfunded liability. Pending legislation would help relieve that pressure by requiring future teachers to retire no earlier than age 60, officials said.

Teachers have a less generous pension formula than lawmakers because they use their own salaries -- not that of a state judge -- to determine how much they can collect. Nor are they entitled to receive health insurance fully paid by the state, as lawmakers do when they retire, officials said.

According to the Texas Retired Teachers Association, the average teacher pension is about $1,800 a month -- minus $300 a month for those who get state health insurance.

Tim Lee, executive director of the Texas Retired Teachers Association, declined to comment on what lawmakers did for their own retirement packages. But he said many teachers don't realize that their pensions are declining in value in the face of higher inflation, health care costs and the like.

"We've got people who are retiring who don't realize that pension increases are not automatic," Lee said. "We have to fight for them every year, and the prospects don't look good for the next couple of sessions."

A state elected official who served 10 years would be entitled to receive a yearly retirement equal to this formula: 10 (years) x $125,000 (judge's salary) x .023 (multiplier) = $28,750.

$125,000: The new salary of a state district judge, on which state politicians' retirement benefits are based, as passed by the House Monday.

$86,250: The annual retirement benefit of a state elected official with 30 years of service.

$34,500: The annual retirement benefit of a state elected official with 12 years of service.

$6,154: The yearly retirement benefit increase to a state elected official with 12 years of service under the new proposal.

NOTE: Retirement benefit means what officials are eligible to draw. Jay Root, (512) 476-4294 jroot@star-telegram.com

Panel to dine on lobby's dime

By R.A. Dyer
Star-Telegram Austin Bureau

AUSTIN - In a move that has good-government groups crying foul, a Texas House committee chairman has elected to hold a end-of-session dinner for his committee at the posh $4 million home of one of the state's most powerful lobbyists.

Invited are all seven members of the House Regulated Industries Committee, headed by Rep. Phil King, R-Weatherford. The panel deals with some of the most powerful companies in telephone, cable and electric utilities.

The Austin lobbyist is Neal "Buddy" Jones, whose clients include AT&T and FPL Energy, each with business before King's committee.

Catering for the Monday dinner comes courtesy of telecommunications companies SBC and Grande Communications, also with business before the committee, King said.

King said he sees nothing wrong with the arrangement.

"It's just the custom around here -- every committee that meets, and usually some lobby covers the cost," King said.

But Suzy Woodford, director of Common Cause Texas, said committee leaders typically pick up the tab for the end-of-session dinners -- and that's how it should be.

"And I don't care if it's typical or not -- it's still not right," Woodford said. "We don't agree with it, and we think what he's doing is an outrage."

Jones, who was recently called one of the state's most powerful lobbyists by Texas Monthly, could not be reached for comment Thursday.

In a written statement, SBC Communications stated that the company complies with all ethics laws and that it reports lobby expenses with the Texas Ethics Commission. A representative for Grande Communications could not be reached.

Each of the companies has pushed or opposed multimillion-dollar legislation with a direct bearing on consumer bills and service before King's committee.

Aggressive utility lobbying of King and other top lawmakers is nothing new.

• Last year, King watched the Super Bowl from a luxury skybox of Centerpoint Energy, a Houston energy company with a multimillion-dollar stake in legislation before his committee. King said that Centerpoint did not pay for his ticket and that he did not discuss legislative business during the game.

• In April, TXU facilitated a trip to the Masters golf tournament for the chairmen of two key Senate committees. Although the lawmakers paid their own way, questions remain as to whether they paid fair market value.

• A TXU official recently circulated a letter soliciting donations for the purchase of a shotgun as a gift to Rep. George "Buddy" West, R-Odessa, who heads the House Energy Resources Committee.

• Last month, TXU used its customer billing lists to send out thousands of letters in a direct-mail lobby effort against a bill before King's committee that could have saved money for TXU customers. That bill appears dead for the session, which ends May 30.

King said the tactics never affect his judgment.

"I never had anyone say to me, 'Hey, we supported you and gave you campaign contributions, or we helped you with this' -- I never had anybody do that," he said. "We're not going to put up with that."

But Woodford marveled at what she described as wining, dining and chutzpah by the industry lobby.

"The average consumer is going to be adversely impacted by the actions [the committee] takes, but the average citizen is not going to be in a position to pay for a dinner or have this access to the Regulated Industries Committee," she said.

• Abortion-rights forces block legislation that would require parental consent before abortions. 4B
ONLINE:www.capitol.state.tx.us
R.A. Dyer, (512) 476-4294 rdyer@star-telegram.com

LAST CHANCE TO CALL REPS AND SENATORS!!!!!!! STOP THE PAYROLL TAX!!!

HERE IS THE LIST FOR THE CONFERENCE COMMITTEE WHERE HB 3 IS IN THE JOINT HACKING OUT PHASE! This is the bill that involves the Payroll Tax (Backdoor income tax)

CALL THESE MEMBERS AND DEMAND THEY REMOVE THE PAY ROLL TAX COMPLETELY FROM THE BILL!

Senate Members-
Find their numbers in the directory
http://www.senate.state.tx.us/75r/Senate/Members.htm

Ogden ( this may be someone who will notice the pressure)
Zaffarini
Staples (Staples has taken notice of pressure from the voters before. So he needs some phone calls)
Troy Frazier
Brimer (Sen. Brimer is another that should be pressured.

House Members
Find their numbers in the directory
http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/welcome.htm

Chisum

Geren (Rep Geren is a business man in the Fort Worth area...so he may be one that folks should call and ask to have a pay roll tax removed.)
http://www.house.state.tx.us/members/dist99/geren.htm

Keffer

Otto

Swinford

IT IS ALSO TIME TO START CONTACTING THE GOVERNOR AND TELL HIM THAT HE NEEDS TO VETO ANY BILL THAT HAS A PAYROLL TAX OR PAYROLL TAX OPTION!

REMIND HIM THAT HE SAID HE WOULD VETO A JOB KILLER.

RECENT STUDIES SHOW THAT A PAYROLL TAX WILL COST THOUSANDS IN JOB GROWTH!

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