Gov. Paul LePage has proposed increasing the salary of the governor and hiking expense reimbursements for state legislators. No doubt, there’s a good reason for these changes, but I don’t have the faintest idea what it is.
Nevertheless, I’m not opposed. Our elected officials deserve adequate compensation for the long hours they devote to making the rest of us miserable. If their salaries and expenses aren’t adjusted from time to time, they can become irritable, causing them to inflict even more suffering on the masses.
LePage is currently paid $70,000 per year or $45 per irrational rant, whichever is higher. This figure was set in law back in 1987, the year “The Simpsons” first appeared on TV. It seemed like a lot of money at the time. Of course, “The Simpsons” seemed funny back then, too.
The governor also gets free rent in the Blaine House, free food, free transportation, free health care and an unaudited expense account of $35,000 a year. That’s roughly the same pay and benefit level as a YouTube vlogger living in his parents’ basement.
It is, however, significantly below the compensation of governors in most states. No matter how you feel about LePage, it’s hard to justify paying him less than a weasely incompetent like Chris Christie of New Jersey or that bumbling idiot from Connecticut whose name I’m not going to bother to look up.
LePage’s bill would raise the governor’s annual salary to $150,000, effective with the inauguration of the next chief executive in January. In return for that sizable bump, legislators ought to add a few amendments to the measure to make sure the public is getting its money’s worth.
For starters, the new governor would have to agree not to follow LePage’s example of taking vacations during legislative sessions. Unlike the incumbent, he or she would have to allow cabinet members to appear before legislative committees to answer questions. The governor’s schedule would have to be made available on a regular basis, a time-honored practice abolished during LePage’s tenure. And the executive branch would have to start abiding by the right-to-know law, ending the current administration’s refusal to acknowledge legitimate requests for information.
Also, the next chief executive should be required to fact-check speeches and other public utterances to avoid the sort of Trumpian distortions LePage is so fond of spewing forth. And it doesn’t seem too much to ask that a staff member edit out the racist and xenophobic comments LePage is prone to barf up in stressful moments.
I’ll gladly pay an extra 80 grand for all that.
Actually, I’ll gladly pay an extra 80 grand for a governor whose name isn’t LePage.
As for legislative remuneration, that’s a more complicated issue. Unlike the governor, state senators and representatives aren’t fulltime employees. Over their two-year terms, they’re expected to be in Augusta for about 10 months, and to be coherent even less than that. They do have to respond to constituent concerns, attend ribbon cuttings and post offensive memes on Facebook, but even so, a salary of nearly $24,500 for the biennium doesn’t seem unreasonable.
Well, maybe a little unreasonable. But less so when you consider the perks that come with it. They get about $8,000 in mileage and meals allowance per session. They get reimbursed for travel in their districts, mailers and other incidentals to the annual tune of $2,000 per senator and $1,500 per representative. They get free or low-cost health insurance, cheap dental and eye care, and free gym memberships. And they’re enrolled in the state retirement system, which costs taxpayers about $2,500 per legislator for each two-year term.
In the past, LePage has tied increasing the money legislators receive to reducing the size of the Legislature, so that nobody over six feet, four inches could serve. To no one’s surprise, the taller members of the House and Senate intimidated their shorter colleagues into defeating that idea.
This time, LePage is backing an increase in meals reimbursement, from $32 per day to $50, and lodging, from $38 to $75. Those numbers don’t seem to be out of line with reality, which makes me wonder how somebody like LePage came up with them.
None of this salary and expense stuff should be particularly high on anybody’s priority list of things state government needs to address. But if throwing a little cash at these bozos makes them even slightly more responsive to real problems, it’s probably money well spent.
Pay me back by emailing aldiamon@herniahill.net.
Governer LePage has been the best Governer that Maine has ever had. I wish him the best.
I’m with you Pete!!!! He may not have the best communication skills, but he has been an excellent
Guardian of the taxpayers hard earned money. I hope the voters remember all the good things he
Did to control wasteful spending when they go to the polls this year. We need to elect another good
Conservative governor, otherwise the Dems will go back to the good old days of tax and spend. Can
Anyone actually deny the fact that he got the state into a much better financial position????
Let me guess. Pete and Mike like Trump too. Yes?
elle,
neither one of them mentioned Trump. Your point?
Let me guess. Elle must be a Liberal
If we can hire someone as qualified as Gov Lepage for $70,000, (Yes, his communication skills could be improved) who, for the money, has done a great job digging this state out of debt Why do we pay school administrators twice that amount? Shouldn’t it be equal pay for equal work. Instead of going higher on the State salaries why not bring others down to a more fair and balanced rate.
You get what you pay for. Apparently DB doesn’t shell out anything for this column. Even some of my extremely liberal friends are sick of the LePage bashing. (Yep, I even have a friend that wears a knit hat; it’s called fair and balanced…)
I think the wage is fair, and Lepage…I guess I’m not really a fan but I don’t dislike him either and feel like he is leaving Maine better than where it was when elected.
I think the doctors creed about “First do no harm” should be used by politicians. If your first order of business is to add to the list of things govt does or add Laws to a bloated system, Your not doing a good job.
In my opinion, “elle’s” comment implies that LePage is similar to POTUS Trump in his unsuitability for the position he holds. But unfortunately, some people fail to recognize that flaw.
Under LePage, Maine became the laughing stock too many times to count. The U.S. under Trump has had a similar fate.
Yes Marie…. Just so sad that we gave up on having another Clinton in the White house… someone with high standards, morals and honesty…
Yes, let’s bring this back to Trump…
Bush/Clinton/Bush/Obama/Trump
9 out of 10 people if read a list of laws/proclamations/executive orders enacted by them would have no idea which one enacted each one. Rather than this being a Dem or Rep problem, I see this more as an issue of why people that should be different as night and day are all basically another cog on the same machine.
Luckily their disciples are night and day different, and will argue and insult each other all day every day about who’s “team” is winning. I hope that someday a majority of people might figure this out.
I did not mention Trump. I just feel that LePage has done a good job for Maine. You can have your opinion.
Folks who be chose not to identify themselves by using FAKE names are folks whose responses, whether opinion or suppised fact shouldn’t be considered for print.
Al Daimon write’s his editorial, and it’s just that, not news but his view. Mike Deschenes is often a “commenter”.
They are the only two here thus far worth conversing with. That’s my opinion.
Laughing stock or not my wallet likes him better than others of the past.
Folks who use their real name only do so to see thier own name on TDB, they also carefully script what they say. I don’t believe thier thoughts or ideas should be considered for print.
See what I did there?
There’s numerous reasons for protecting ones identity and privacy, no one asked you to give weight to anyone’s opinion you like or don’t like. This is described as Freedom, try it out- read what you like and don’t read what you don’t like…
It’s an easy concept, I applaud TDB for allowing people to comment without compromising their privacy. I’ve ran a website (forum/message board) for over 6 years and never allow real names or pictures because it makes you a commodity. A lot of people didn’t understand why our site did this- then Facebook got outed for selling your data.
Did facebooks data sales not teach us anything at all?
Heidi, how do I know your name isn’t fake?
opinions are just that only opinions.
not everyone can ever agree on everything.
So laughable when they get on their self righteous soap box about using a name or not..
If you don’t like the way the BD does it feel free to go where the “clicks” are, and so many are just saying what they think they are “Supposed” to say……instead of what they really think.
BORING,, Zzz zzz….
And you know its true.
I also applaude the BD for their policy.
I for one, applaud Gov. LePage for the Great job he has done, I only wish that he could run again. I can’t imagine who the next one will be to serve. Everyone will be on hand outs….