BOISE — The Idaho Senate voted to reject pay raises for themselves that were previously set by a citizen’s committee.
Sen. Christy Zito, R-Mountain Home, sponsored Senate Concurrent Resolution 101, which rejected the Citizens’ Committee on Legislative Compensation’s adopted pay raise of about $5,087 a year to set legislator salaries at $25,000. If the resolution passes the House, lawmakers’ salaries would go back to where they were at $19,913 annually.
“I am confident that the forgotten men and women of Idaho, who work hard to pay their taxes, have not received a 22% increase in their pay this year, at a time when inflation is causing deep hardships for many across the state,” Zito said. “An increase of this magnitude is simply inappropriate.”
Sen. Glenneda Zuiderveld, R-Twin Falls, pointed out that the Idaho GOP passed a resolution stating the party central committee “opposes any rate of salary increase for Legislator positions until; they pass a conservative budget reducing total State appropriations by a minimum of 28% and eliminating the tax on groceries,” the resolutions states.
Sen. Phil Hart, R-Kellogg, debated against the resolution, saying that the number paid to legislators is a very small piece of Idaho’s budget pie, and that a legislative pay increase would allow lawmakers to spend more time on legislative work.
“What it will do for me is it’ll shift the boundary line between how much time I can spend doing legislative work and how much time I’ll spend on my engineering job,” Hart said, “and if I can do more legislative work, I can represent my constituents better.”
Sen. Brian Lenney, R-Nampa, said he would support the resolution but that he thought there’s “bigger fish to fry in Idaho.”
He also said he felt like the resolution was “hoisted” on the Legislature by out-of-state groups. Zito objected to this comment.
“Whether we reject this pay raise or accept this pay raise, it doesn’t make a difference, in my opinion, for our constituents,” Lenney said.
Senators voted in a voice vote — meaning individual “yes” and “no” votes were not recorded. Senate President Pro Tem Kelly Anthon, R-Burley, ruled that the yes votes were louder, and the resolution was approved.
It will go to the House for a vote. If the House votes no on the resolution, then the pay raises will continue to be in effect.
Then-Senate Pro Tem Chuck Winder proposed the pay raises in November, by which time he had been defeated in his primary contest and knew he would not be returning. Winder and House Speaker Mike Moyle originally proposed a 43% increase to $37,801 a year, but the citizens’ committee rejected this proposal, the Idaho Capital Sun reported.
Winder had told committee members he thought the increases would be useful to attract younger candidates to run for office and to address high housing costs in Boise.
The committee comprises Idaho residents appointed by the governor and the Idaho Supreme Court. Its adopted salary goes into effect unless the Legislature rejects it by the 25th day of the regular legislative session — Friday marked the 12th legislative day.
Guido covers Idaho politics for the Lewiston Tribune, Moscow-Pullman Daily News and Idaho Press of Nampa. She may be contacted at lguido@idahopress.com and can be found on Twitter @EyeOnBoiseGuido.
