Of course it’s outrageous: but so what?
CLT wasn’t going to comment on the
legislative payraise because there is nothing we, you,
or anybody else can do about it. Voters foolishly voted
in 1998 for a constitutional amendment to create these
automatic raises; this can never be changed, just pay it
and get over it.
But you should be aware:
The ballot question was not an
initiative petition. It was placed on the ballot as a
legislative amendment. The campaign was led by
Tom Finneran, then Speaker of the House, who sold it as
a way to stop the Legislature from voting for its own
payraises. There was no attention paid to the REASON
that the Legislature wouldn’t vote for its own payraise:
that legislators would become the only people in the
history of the world to get constitutionally-guaranteed
payraises.
Despite CLT’s best efforts –
we paid for radio ads which opposed it on the ballot
– the voters were hoodwinked. Most of the
media didn’t cover the issue because it was a
Finneran initiative and most of the media was still
hoodwinked by him. Voters didn’t carefully read the red
voter information booklet.
BTW, there is no reason for legislators
not to take it: they will be re-elected no matter
what they do. Giving it to local charities is nice, but
also worth the local publicity that helps make that
re-election even easier. Also, keeping the increase but
donating it to charity still increases the salary base
toward legislators’ pensions.
Despite what House Speaker DiMasi is
saying, the pay will never go down. A future computation
may require a cut in the base pay (The MetroWest
Daily News, Dec. 31, 2000 - "Legislature
seeks pay hike loophole"), but the legislative
leadership will simply create new positions that give
bonus pay (CLT Update, Jul. 2, 2003 - "Finneran
Power-Grab teetering at the precipice"), so that the actual paychecks won’t drop.
More legislative payraise
shenanigans history
The below legislative actions came after the
Legislature achieved its
constitutionally-mandated automatic payraises
foolishly approved by the voters on the 1998
ballot -- the ballot question that promised to
prevent legislators from ever voting themselves
another pay grab.
CLT Update
January 1, 2001
Greed again stalks empty Statehouse corridors
-->
The MetroWest Daily News
Dec. 31, 2000
Legislature seeks pay hike loophole
By David Caruso
http://cltg.org/cltg/cltg2001/01-01-01.htm
CLT Update
July 2, 2003
Finneran Power-Grab teetering at the precipice
-->
The Boston Herald
Jul. 2, 2003
Foes of speaker's pay-raise bill promise lawsuit
by Elisabeth J. Beardsley
House Speaker Thomas M. Finneran's
controversial pay raise bill is headed for a
court battle if the House boss succeeds in
pushing it past Gov. Mitt Romney's veto,
opponents said yesterday....
If the speaker musters a two-thirds vote to
override the veto, Citizens for Limited
Taxation said it's ready with a lawsuit.
"The constitution is a sacred document," said
CLT chief Barbara Anderson. "This
definitely has to be stopped."
http://cltg.org/cltg/clt2003/03-07-02.htm
CLT Update
July 18, 2003
Democracy won; Finneran zero -->
The Boston Globe
Jul. 18, 2003
Finneran reluctantly postpones action on pay
hike measure
By Rick Klein
Acknowledging that he'd created a
"distraction" that's taken away from important
business facing the state, House Speaker Thomas
M. Finneran yesterday put off until 2005 his bid
to grant pay raises to his lieutenants,
effectively killing the measure for the
foreseeable future.
http://www.cltg.org/cltg/clt2003/03-07-18.htm
CLT Update
January 28, 2007
"We're better than this" bribery is better than
what? -->
The Boston Globe
Jan. 28, 2007
Governor weighing deal on pay hikes
Lawmakers' raises tied to support, sources say
By Frank Phillips
Governor Deval Patrick, in a significant
departure from former governor Mitt Romney, is
contemplating a deal with Democratic legislative
leaders that would grant significant pay raises
to their top lieutenants in return for their
support in implementing his plans for sweeping
government changes, according to sources
involved in the discussions....
http://cltg.org/cltg/clt2007/07-01-28.htm