FEEDING AT THE TROUGH

 

 

Lawmakers give
themselves a raise

 

House OKs its own pay hike
The Associated Press  Wednesday, September 15, 2004

WASHINGTON—With little debate, House lawmakers on Tuesday included themselves as part of a pay raise that all federal employees will receive next year.

The cost-of-living adjustment would be the sixth straight for members of the House and Senate, boosting the salaries of lawmakers, now $158,100, by about $4,000 in the new calendar year.

The civil servant COLA is part of an $89.9 billion Transportation and Treasury Department spending bill that the House is expected to pass today.

The Senate Appropriations Committee approved its version of the spending bill Tuesday and it, too, opened the door for lawmakers' salaries to rise.

The measure stipulates that civil servants get raises of 3.5 percent, the same as military personnel will receive next year. Under a complicated formula, that translates to 2.5 percent for members of Congress.

In 1989, Congress made annual pay increases automatic unless the lawmakers voted otherwise.