Method of legislative raises is ‘ingenious political move’

The one thing we all know — or at least the one thing we have been told — is that hard work and extra effort are what’s needed if you want to reap extra benefits.

Working overtime, contributing more, volunteering to take on extra projects will all pay off in extra compensation, we are told.

There is, however, one job, where doing nothing, being perfectly still and not disturbing the existing balance will give you more.

By more I mean more pay.

That job is as one of the 76 state legislators. If they do nothing to stop an expected pay raise, they will get more if they are reelect-ed in 2014.

Thanks to a state constitutional amendment that set up the state salary commission, all the Legislature has to do is look at but not touch the recommendations by the 2012 state Salary Commission.

"The recommended salaries submitted shall become effective as provided in the recommendation, unless the Legislature disapproves the entire recommendation as a whole by adoption of a concurrent resolution prior to adjournment, " the state Constitution says.

This year the legislative sleight-of-hand was criticized by GOP Sen. Sam Slom, who said in an interview that "my biggest gripe is there are no public hearings; there is no vote unless there is a vote to deny it."

So far, the commission has made no recommendations. In 2007, the commission quietly sent in its report during the last week of the Legislature with just enough time for the lawmakers to say they never saw it.

Back then, lawmakers received $35,900. After the salary commission did its work, the salary was supposed to climb 36 percent after the next election.

Because this was happening right when the nation was slipping into recession, lawmakers trimmed the increases — but with the economy on a green light, lawmakers now getting $46,272 in January will see their pay jump 25 percent to $57,852.

Besides their salary, legislators also get pay for expenses. They get $150 a day for members living outside Oahu during session; $120 a day for members living outside Oahu during interim while conducting legislative business; $10 a day for members living on Oahu during the interim while conducting official legislative business

Sorry for all the numbers, but it’s unavoidable when talking about salaries.

It is important to note that the $57,852 will be the base number for the new salary commission to use as it studies an increase. And the only thing the commission can do is recommend more money; the commission cannot take away a salary already paid out.

For the public, the problem is that unless you have such an all-encompassing interest in state government that you regularly comb the state calendar, you would not know that the new salary commission has already held five meetings. The next one is scheduled for Feb. 12 at 9 a.m. in the state office tower.

Even if the pay raises are made with public money, information about the salary commission is nearly nonexistent.

The commission’s agenda dutifully notes that each meeting has a time set aside for public testimony. The commission’s work is supposed to be assisted by the Governor’s Office and by the state Human Resources Department. So far, neither the Governor’s Office website nor any other state website has anything more than the calendar notice.

Back in 2007, when the Star-Bulletin’s Lee Catterall queried the Center for Public Integrity about the method Hawaii uses to adopt pay raises by not actively voting no, a spokesman called the method of achieving the pay raise "an ingenious political move — ‘once-removing’ themselves so you can’t say, ‘you voted for a pay raise. …You have to connect the dots."

Actually, if you are a legislator, you don’t connect anything. You just sit tight and quiet, and good things will happen to you.

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Richard Borreca writes on politics on Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays. Reach him at rborreca@staradvertiser.com.