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John Fichter last night voted to increase his own salary 16%, beyond the cost of living raises the legislature already receives. As John Grogan put it in the Philadelphia Inquirer today, this pay raise is a travesty. This pay raise puts Pennsylvania's legislature salaries 2nd only to California legislators. One big difference: California has only 80 legislators serving and paid by its 36 million population. Pennsylvania has a whopping 203 legislators serving and paid by its 12 million population. Thus, we have almost 9 times the burden of legislator salaries per capita than does California. And what do we have to show for it? In the case of Fichter, a do-nothing legislator who hasn't introduced a single significant bill or initiative of his own, and serves his corporate and party masters with his votes, rather than his constituents. Oops, I forgot- he does serve one of his constituents with this latest vote- himself.
As I've said before, I believe that the Pennsylvania Legislature would be twice as productive with half the members or by reducing the sessions (and thereby the pay) in half. Kudos to Montgomery County representatives Michael Gerber, Thomas Quigley, Carol Rubley, and Josh Shapiro for voting against the pay raise!
P.S. July 18, 2005: Super Double Extra Kudos to Josh Shapiro and Mike Gerber who declined to accept the pay raise! It's good to see ethics and principles by a few in the State House.
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