(Governor’s Council ) Pay hike (40%) discord arises

[unhappycamper]

http://www.bostonherald.com/news_opinion/local_politics/2015/07/pay_hike_discord_arises



MONEY ISSUES: Gov. Charlie Baker, above, must decide on the budget proposal to hike the pay of the Governor’s Council. Senate President Stanley C. Rosenberg called pay raises for legislators ‘fair game’ for debate.

Pay hike discord arises
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
Matt Stout

Senate President Stanley C. Rosenberg — fielding questions about a budget rider that calls for controversial $10,000 raises for the obscure and archaic Governor’s Council — opened the door to putting lawmakers’ own pay hikes back on the table, calling it “fair game.”

“If you look at what’s happened with legislator salaries, they’re way off the charts — meaning underfunded — given the level of responsibility that people have in this state,” Rosenberg said yesterday alongside Gov. Charlie Baker and House Speaker Robert A. DeLeo, when asked about the raises for the part-time council.

“We really don’t do a very good job of respecting public service in this state,” the Amherst Democrat added. “And so you can focus on this one piece (about the Governor’s Council) today but the bigger question or the bigger issue is, when people commit themselves to public service, should they be paid a reasonable wage? ... I think it’s fair game for us to debate.”

Pay hikes for lawmakers and other elected leaders resurfaced last December, when a Legislature-commissioned task force released a report outlining a range of raises. A bill never gained traction, thanks in part to the end-of-session timing, but also because Baker spoke out against them, saying it was “not the time to be talking about pay increases.”

[merrily]

1. Legislators can use a raise. The Governor's Council should be eliminated.

So should Baker but that's another story.