The National Conference of State Legislatures considers New Jersey's legislature as "full time light." Meaning I guess, that serving in the legislature is not quite a full time job, but close. NCSL considers a legislature full time if the job requires 80% of the legislator's time and pays enough not to require outside income.
New Jersey legislators are paid $49,000. Not enough to live and support a family in New Jersey.
A while back I was talking to a NJ legislator and I noted that the person, based on his or her length of service could soon retire and collect a pension. I'm not naming the person because this post is about the system, not the person.
I was shocked by the legislator's response; "I couldn't live on that."
Not that I expected that the person could live on a pension based on a $49,000 salary. I wasn't expecting that the person was dependent on such a small salary to live now.
This person is not a double or triple dipper. To my knowledge, the only income this legislator gets directly from the taxpayers is the $49,000.00 legislative salary.
What I construed from the comment was that this person's living, while not derived directly from the legislative salary, was dependent on the person's status as a state legislator, at least in his or her own mind.
If this way of thinking is pervasive in the Senate and Assembly, and it would make sense that it is, perhaps it is time to consider employing legislators the was we employ judges. Not with life time appoinments, but with full time compensation and restrictions on how outside income is derived.
We've gotten into the mess we are in with "part-time" legislators who are compensated modestly. They must be concerned with their own incomes on a daily basis. This has to shape how they think and act.
If we hired our legislature to represent us, and not themselves, on a full time basis, we might have legislators who are willing to make tough decisions.
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3 comments:
I would take the opposite approach and not pay legislators anything at all. No salary or benefits. Further, members of the state senate and assembly would be required to resign from all state and local taxpayer funded jobs and all positions with employers deriving any revenue from state and local government contracts, grants, etc. I would reimburse them for their trip to Trenton and back home at the standard federal reimburse rate, currently 50.5 cents per mile. That’s it.
I shudder to think of the damage these characters would inflict on a full-time basis and if their livelihoods were wholly dependent upon staying in office. The less time they spend in Trenton dreaming up ways to spend taxpayer money the better.
I like your idea too Enlighten, but I think it is about as likely to come to be as my idea to privatize all schools.
I think making them full time, and term limited to 3 terms would make more sense.
I disagree Art.
No ones livlehood should be dependent on an elected office. That creates the ultimate conflict of interest.
I have known elected officials who depended on there position for med benefits and or to support there families. It is not a good place to be.
The legislature should be part time. No pension, no benefits expense reimbursment for legitimate things (with a limit on out of state junkets)and pay them a nominal salary. Say five or ten grand at most. Same for Freeholders. Council people and Mayors get less then 5 grand. Board of Ed members get nothing.
Of course I would cut the amount of time they work by about 2 thirds in the hope that they would spend there time more wisely.
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