House Opens the Way for Fourth Straight Raise in Pay

Associated Press ^ | Jul 18, 2002 | Jim Abrams

[tomball]

WASHINGTON (AP) - House lawmakers cleared the way Thursday to give themselves a pay raise for the fourth straight year, increasing their salaries about $5,000.

If that raise goes into effect, rank-and-file members of Congress would receive $155,000, an increase of more than $20,000 over the past decade.

Under a 1989 law, congressional pay raises, determined by a complicated formula that includes a measure of private industry employment costs, go into effect automatically unless lawmakers vote to block it.

Showdowns over pay raises traditionally take place during debate on the annual spending bill for the Treasury Department and related agencies, but a 258-156 procedural vote at the opening of that debate effectively prevented lawmakers from offering an amendment to kill the raise.

The only lawmaker to speak against the raise was Rep. James Matheson, D-Utah. "We can't afford it, last year's government surpluses are long gone, we are swimming in red ink, we are fighting a war. We shouldn't be asking the taxpayers to pay us more," he said.

The congressional raise is estimated to be about 3.3 percent. The Treasury bill for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1 includes a 4.1 percent cost-of-living increase for civilian federal employees, equal to a raise approved for military personnel.

The 3.3 percent pay raise, which would go into effect in January, would also apply to more than 1,000 top executive branch officials, including the vice president, and members of the congressional leadership. The vice president, like the Speaker of the House, now gets $192,600 while House and Senate majority and minority leaders receive $166,700.

The president's salary of $400,000 a year is unaffected by the congressional increase.

America's first members of Congress received pay of $6 a day. In 1855, compensation was set at $3,000 a year. It hit $10,000 in 1935, $60,000 in 1979, and went above $100,000 in 1991. The pay level stalled at $133,600 during the mid-1990s with lawmakers wary of giving themselves a raise when the federal budget was in deficit, but has risen steadily since then.

[RAT Patrol]

Maybe I'm the only one but I don't think $20,000 over ten years is unreasonable, nor do I think $155,000 is too much for the job required of them. My gripe is when they spend money to buy votes. That's what bugs me.

[Lord_Baltar]

Wow, big surprise.

The only surprise here is that these crooks didn't vote themselves a 10k per year raise, instead of 5k.

[RAT Patrol]

wastes, in an audit, of the NEA amounting to 500 Million....MILLION dollars. The NEA can't find it, as so many other government agencies, just can't find it. That is my money, and it's your money, Now that bugs me too, but the raise seems reasonable.

[Bahbah]

Do not forget that it was Dick Gephardt that brought you this little maneuver in one of those late night, under the radar votes. I felt like going to DC and beating him with a baseball bat. I still do.

[Bahbah]

They do not do the job required of them.

[dogbyte12]

I will not be too concerned until Congressional pay is more than what a utility infielder for the Montreal Expos makes.

I think I would want that much money to have a home in two areas. The only people who don't have to worry about this are those who live close enough like in Virginia. Pay is not the issue, it is performance. Until we start merit pay in the congress, salaries have to be this high, or we will be stuck with a bunch of wealthy trial lawyers who can afford the hit in income to be in congress.

[College Repub]

Or Corzine types!

[gcruse]

Pay the Man

Give them the money, it's stole fair and square.
We are the idiots elected them there.
We send them as lefties and righties, but drat!
They end up Republican and Democrat.

[justshe]

Not only do I hear your rant....but I agree 100%. I have contacted my rep and made your/my view known.

My message was: Take care of those taking care of YOU.... before you take care of yourself.

The men and women in the military deserve MORE than the raises currently proposed.

[gcruse]

Absolutely. They are elected. We expect them to govern, now. That does not include the self-enrichment they are all so enamored of.

[Mo1]

LOL .. Thanks

But Seriously this is COMPLETE BULL .. They have one heck of a nerve giving themselves ANOTHER pay raise

These are the same people who are running around screaming we are running out of money

They have one hell of a nerve pulling this stunt

[Mo1]

Absolutely. They are elected. We expect them to govern, now. That does not include the self-enrichment they are all so enamored of.

Since THEY are the employee and We are the employer

I VOTE for a Pay Freeze on all their salaries

HECK .. FIRE THEM!!!

[Betty Jo]

You get the rope, I'll get the pitchfork!

We are paying the people that sat by and aided and abetted the murders of thousands of Americans by terrorists.

Now they want MORE $$$$$$$.

Like I've said before, they can all go to hell!

[altair]

I wouldn't care if they made a million dollars a year, if they were doing a proper job. They're not and things like automatic pay raises unless they vote to stop it are unconscionable.

If their pay was tied to how many laws they repealed and how many regulations they eliminated or simplified I wouldn't begrudge them 10 million dollars a year. It would be worth it.

[justshe]

We are paying the people that sat by and aided and abetted the murders of thousands of Americans by terrorists.

Aided and abetted is a bit over the top, isn't it? I don't, for one minute, believe one person in the House aided and abetted the terrorists.

[Itzlzha]

Who can provide the vote breakdown on the override?

I want to see who I need to campaign against!!!! I want to see how many Multi-Millionaires just upped their salary at MY expense!!!!

And I'M SUPPOSED TO MAKE DO...WHILE THEY PICK MY POCKET?!?!

If these STUPID (R)'s were to get a raise based on performance, they'd OWE ME $$$$!!!

Time to brush off the famous Jefferson quote...y'know, the one a bout a "little revolution now and then" being a good thing...

[Bahbah]

I could not agree more. And it would be easy to pay for those salaries.

[terilyn]

Most excellent rant!

[maxwellp]

Your rant was beautiful! Our military folks deserve triple what these jerk politicians get.

[Trteamer]

Now wait just a minute their folks, our Congressmen are way too busy passing more laws to be bothered by reading any of them.

When you go to their office with a legitimate request, you don't get the time of day. The only way I will ever get to meet my Congressman would be if I donated money to get into some political event. When they are not in Washington, they are not in their local office.

They need that pay raise because they need it. Doesn't matter how they get it, just be a sheep in the herd and you can get your pay raise too. Don't rock the boat, they have a sweet deal going. They are addicted to passing more laws, so getting the big bucks while doing it is what it's all about.

Call them what they are: "LAWMAKERS".