If giving up raises is good for AIG, it should be good for members of the U.S. Congress. So says Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wisconsin), in urging his fellow lawmakers to put an end to their annual automatic taxpayer-funded bonuses.
“The nation is rightly outraged at the taxpayer-funded bonuses some executives at the insurance giant AIG are receiving, and many in Washington are railing against them as well,” Feingold said in a press release. “But for the last twenty years, members of Congress have also received regular taxpayer-funded bonuses as part of the automatic pay raise system, often without any debate or vote.”
Feingold called on the House of Representatives to follow the Senate’s lead by passing his bill, S. 620, ending the automatic raises for Congress. The Senate passed the bill on March 17 by a unanimous voice vote.
If passed by the House, Feingold’s bill would end the automatic pay raises effective Dec. 31, 2010, thus cancelling the raises scheduled for 2011 and beyond. Congress has already voted to reject the pay raise for 2010, but in January 2009, members of Congress accepted a $4,700 raise granted through what Sen. Feingold called the “stealth pay-raise” system. The 2009 pay raise followed a December 2008 report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics placing the national unemployment rate at 7.2 percent.
With their 2009 pay raise, rank-and-file members of Congress currently make $174,000 per year. Majority and minority party leaders make $193,400, and the Speaker of the House makes $223,500.
“The secrecy surrounding the automatic pay raise is wrong. Let’s shine a light on this so the public knows where we stand,” said the bill’s cosponsor Rep. Jim Matheson (D-Utah). “I’m not saying members of Congress should never have a raise. But there definitely should be an open debate on the subject.”
If you would like to debate their rate of pay with your members of Congress, the best way is to send them a personal letter.
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Also See:
Congress Getting a Pay Raise – How About You?
Salaries and Benefits of U.S. Congress Members
Writing Letters to Your Members of Congress
Comments
I think Congressmen receive too much salary for the job they are doing for the people. They argue with each other like children and do not get together for advantagous projects/bills/programs that are for the benefit of the people of our country. They are too busy voting the party line and not voting for what is good for the people. I think it is treasonous, unethical, and shameful. They don’t seem to realize what condition our country is in and what is actually going on in real people’s lives. They do not live in the ‘real world’ that the majority of people do. Shame on them!
Need to do away with Congress all together. Who needs them now with the internet? The American people could do all the voting on the bills and either pass them or not via a click. People in this country are smart enough and besides it would save this country lots of money. It’s an idea whose time has come. We really should think about it.