COMMISSION ON SALARIES FOR ELECTIVE STATE OFFICERS

Minutes of Interim Meeting

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Senate Hearing Room 1 -- 8:30 a.m.

Chairman Atkins called the meeting to order at 8:33 a.m. and attendance was noted by the secretary.

Members Present

Karen S. Johnson (via phone) Dennis Mitchem (via phone)

Joe Kanefield Lisa Atkins, Chairman

Brian Kaufman

Members Absent

None

INTRODUCTION OF COMMISSION MEMBERS

Senator Johnson and Mr. Mitchem introduced themselves via teleconference. Mr. Kanefield,
Mr. Kaufman and Chairman Atkins introduced themselves.

Travis Butchart, Senior Compensation Analyst, Human Resources Division, Arizona Department of Administration (ADOA), provided a brief charge of the Commission. He presented historical data on legislative salaries for elective state officers (Attachment 1). He related that according to A.R.S. § 41-1903, beginning in 2002, a review of the rates of pay for elective state officers, justices and judges of court and clerks of the superior court will be conducted by the Commission the purposes of determining and providing pay levels appropriate to the duties and responsibilities of the respective offices. Due to time constraints, only legislative salaries will be discussed today. He provided members with data on legislative salaries, both nationally as well as historical data for the State of Arizona.

Chairman Atkins asked Mr. Butchart to discuss the time constraints. Mr. Butchart explained that there is a July 3 deadline to get any proposition on the ballot for voter approval.
Chairman Atkins stated the reason that is important is because legislative salary recommendations are referred to the ballot for voter approval. Mr. Mitchem said he understands that the purpose of this meeting is to discuss getting the issue of legislative salaries on the ballot. Chairman Atkins concurred. She said that when the Commission met two years ago, it was with a similar time frame and then met in October to deal with the other responsibilities of the Commission.

COMMISSION DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON LEGISLATIVE SALARY RECOMMENDATION

Mr. Mitchem recommended that public testimony be taken before discussion on recommendations. Chairman Atkins opened the discussion to public testimony; however, no one asked to testify.

Mr. Mitchem discussed his involvement with this subject which goes back to the time when legislative salaries were raised from $3,000 to $6,000 per year. In 2000, it was proposed that salaries be raised to $30,000 but that proposal was voted down. In 2002, the recommended increase to $36,000 was also turned down. He said the issue is not whether legislators are underpaid but to decide on an amount that will be approved by the voters. He stated support for increasing legislative salaries.

Chairman Atkins asked whether Mr. Mitchem is supportive of increasing salaries and asked whether he has a number in mind. Mr. Mitchem replied that he does not have a specific number in mind. He believes that $34,700 is appropriate, keeping in mind the increase in the cost of living. He recommended settling on $35,000 which is justified because legislators should not have to take a cut every year.

Mr. Mitchem moved that the Commission recommend that legislative salaries be increased from $24,000 to $35,000 per year. Mr. Kanefield seconded the motion.

Mr. Kanefield thanked Mr. Butchart and the ADOA for putting together the data on the history of the proposed increases going back several election cycles. He thanked the legislators for the hard work and sacrifices they make in serving the State of Arizona, personally, professionally and financially. He noted that their current annual salary of $24,000 barely covers some of the incidental costs they have to incur to serve and noted that in other states, some legislators are paid up to $90,000 per year. He advised that the reason he cannot support anything higher than $35,000 is simply because voters will not support a higher salary. It is important to note that in 2006, when an increase from $24,000 to $36,000 was proposed, it only failed by a couple of percentage points (48 percent of the voters approved the increase and 52 percent voted against the increase). In 2008, when the proposed increase was $30,000, only 36 percent of the voters approved the increase because of the recession and the state facing a substantial budget deficit. He pointed out that the economy has greatly improved since 2008. He stated that this Commission is not making the decision whether to increase salaries, it is merely proposing the question to the voters who will ultimately decide whether the increase should be passed into law. He said the increase will help legislators while lessening the financial burden on them. He said that voters should be given the opportunity to decide the issue and he asked Members to support the motion.

Mr. Kaufman stated that $35,000 is higher than he would recommend. The issue is deciding what the voters will approve. He said he believes an increase to $28,000 is more realistic.

Senator Johnson said that in Navajo County where she is currently residing, the area is extremely depressed economically and she does not believe the voters will vote to raise legislative salaries.

Because of the economy, she believes that putting a salary increase on the ballot this year is doing a disservice to the public. Chairman Atkins mentioned that the economy around the state differs greatly; however, it is getting better. She stated concern about this process:

convening the meeting so close to the ballot deadline without more input and deliberation
not discussing the other portion of legislators' pay (per diem)

Chairman Atkins noted that the legislative job is about 110 days per year or half-time. She said she believes per diem should be addressed by the Legislature. She would like both salary and per diem discussed together; however, per diem is not under the purview of this Commission. She mentioned the responsibility, as citizens of the state, to ensure that legislators are compensated for the time and effort they put into the job. She reiterated the need to have some dialog with regard to the per diem portion of the equation.

Question was called on the motion that the Commission recommend that legislative salaries be increased from $24,000 to $35,000 per year. The motion carried by a voice vote.

Chairman Atkins noted that Senator Johnson and Mr. Kaufman voted against the motion while Mr. Mitchem and Mr. Kanefield voted for the motion. She explained that she reluctantly voted in favor of referring the increase to the ballot because she believes the voters should have the opportunity to decide this issue.

Mr. Mitchem commented that he has been a long-time advocate for higher salaries for elective officials. In recent times, he has been hearing that some people believe that legislators' salaries are supplemented with "graft." He does not believe that is true. He opined that Arizona's elected legislators perform a valuable public service and should not be ridiculed. He said that with higher pay, that kind of negative thinking can be eliminated.

Chairman Atkins asked Mr. Butchart to advise what the Commission has to do regarding the requirements for the Secretary of State's Office. She reminded members that the Commission's responsibilities relating to executive and judicial salaries will be addressed at a meeting later this year, after Labor Day.

Mr. Kanefield moved to adjourn the meeting. The motion was seconded by Mr. Kaufman.

Without objection, the meeting adjourned at 9:00 a.m.

______________________________

Joanne Bell, Committee Secretary

July 1, 2014

(Original minutes, attachments and audio on file in the Chief Clerk’s Office; video archives available at http://www.azleg.gov)

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COMMISSION ON SALARIES FOR

ELECTIVE STATE OFFICERS

June 25, 2014

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