How much are you going to make this year? $60,000 . . . $30,000 . . . $100,000? Well, thank your Congress-person ,because soon just a little more of that piece of pie will be taken to pay their automatic salary increase (click here for the FoxNews report [and the only place you'll see it right now], and here for all of the Google News feeds). Beginning January 1, 2009, members of congress will receive an additional $4,700 cost of living increase. When was the last time your employer gave you that much as a mandatory pay increase? The most frustrating aspect of this deal is that the raise will increase the average salary to about $174,000. THAT’S FAR BEYOND MY EXPECTED SALARY THIS YEAR.
I think the most striking paragraphs of the article by Stephen Clark at FoxNews are these (the bold is mine):
The Senior Citizens League asserted the pay raise would rank each lawmaker in the top six percent of American households.
"As lawmakers make a big show of forcing auto executives to accept just $1 a year in salary, they are quietly raiding the vault for their own personal gain," the group’s chairman, Daniel O’Connell, said in a written statement. "This money would be much better spent helping the millions of seniors who are living below the poverty line and struggling to keep their heat on this winter."
The group estimates that a senior receiving average benefits will get a $63 monthly increase to just $1,153 per month next year, increasing their annual total to $13,836.
The pay raises come as the economic recession deepens. The economy lost 533,000 jobs in November, bringing the unemployment rate to 6.7 percent.
Now, this blog generally addresses legal issues, but often, legal issues mesh with political issues, especially when they affect your ability to handle your finances. Additonally, we all need to be concerned about government waste, whether it’s on a local level or national spectrum. Every dollar you’re paying to someone else only makes them richer, and eventually leaves less for your benefit.
We’re going to commend those members of congress who have advocated reducing their salaries, and again shame those who are stuck in the Washington rut.
By the way, don’t even get me started on this story. I’m so sick of other people wasting my money, it makes me want to vomit! I do that well enough on my own.
