SB214, a bill raising Constitutional officer salaries up Friday in the Senate
I see that SB 214 an act to increase the compensation of the secretary of state, the state treasurer, the state auditor, and the commissioner of school and public lands is in appropriations on Friday.
Sponsored by Senators Greenfield, Bartling, and Maher and Representatives Dennert, Burg, Carson, Davis, Rausch, and Tidemann, the measure might correct the disparity these officials have with the salaries of the members of the Public Utilities Commission - also elected, but not a constitutional office.
Coming after a bill to increase legislative salaries went down, I'll be curious to see how they handle the debate.
Frankly, I think they all deserve an increase, or at least the potential for it placed into law.
Sponsored by Senators Greenfield, Bartling, and Maher and Representatives Dennert, Burg, Carson, Davis, Rausch, and Tidemann, the measure might correct the disparity these officials have with the salaries of the members of the Public Utilities Commission - also elected, but not a constitutional office.
Coming after a bill to increase legislative salaries went down, I'll be curious to see how they handle the debate.
Frankly, I think they all deserve an increase, or at least the potential for it placed into law.
Comments
In comparison, the SoS, Auditor, Treasurer, and Cmsr of S&PL fill bureaucratic jobs that don't require any particular knowledge or make one marketable in the private sector (beyond whatever political contacts or skills one may develop).
I think the real conversation should be combining those four jobs into two - perhaps if they had more oversight responsibility, it would be easier to justify higher pay.
My guess is anon 2:30 is Dusty's mother.
As for the legislators they do not really make enough money. Their elected official positons are worked the full term the are elected. There are meetings, phone calls from citizens all year long and at just about anytime of the day or evening. They put in more hours than most people know.
Yes, they learn other items while holding a position but they had to have knowledge to get there.
Holding down the little guy and giving these high paid and high profile politicians a raise makes no sense.
Shame.
On the other hand, the auditor, treasurer, and cmsr S&PL are antiquated anachronisms that should be consolodated into one job or (better yet) absorbed into the executive branch.
If i remember correctly the State Treas. has a larger load now, didn't that office take over the lost propoerty and surplus property? I hope I am phrasing this correctly.
On the contrary, I don't believe Kolbeck got much of a raise from his old job.
The unclaimed property function was with the state treasurer back in the day when the previous office holder was frequently AWOL, yet the office must have carried on. I recall that officeholder fighting in the MSP a lot with the then Governor, and a bill to strip the then Democratic Treasurer of his unclaimed property duties which failed.
So no. That's been there for a while. And other than reap a little free press when publishing lists of people who have money coming in the paper I seriously doubt the actual office holder performs many of those duties except to be a virtual figurehead. I suspect he has employees who handle them.
So no raise.