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A measure that would defer 10% pay raises for state legislators advanced Friday to a final reading next week.
The bill that passed out of conference committee suddenly Friday included funding for the state reapportionment commission. It also would postpone different pay raises for the governor, department heads and judges to Jan. 1, 2023.
In 2019, before the COVID-
19 pandemic, the state Salary Commission recommended that legislators receive pay raises of 10% and subsequent raises of 2.5% over the following three years. The raises were postponed in 2020 due to the pandemic and were scheduled to go into effect July 1.
A provision to fund the reapportionment commission, the body that reevaluates how legislative seats are distributed based on new census data, was included in the measure agreed upon Friday by negotiators from the House and Senate.
“The Constitution provides that the Legislature fund the reapportionment commission, and, unfortunately, it was not included in the budget document that we passed earlier this month,” said House conference committee chairman Rep. Mark
Nakashima (D, Kukuihaele-
Laupahoehoe-North Hilo). “We had to find a vehicle to put the funding in.”
The amended measure
allocates $387,200 to the commission.
Earlier this month Gov. David Ige said in a statement that he supported deferring pay raises for state officials, including himself.
Both the House and Senate will have to vote to pass the amended measure Tuesday. If it passes, it will be sent to Ige for consideration.
