- Associated Press - Wednesday, January 25, 2017

BOSTON (AP) - A bill calling for nearly $18 million in annual pay raises for top legislators, statewide elected officials and judges cleared the Democratic-controlled House on Wednesday, with Republicans complaining that the measure was being rushed through without enough public discussion.

The 115-44 vote sends the bill to the Senate, where passage is likely on Thursday.

Nine Democrats joined all 35 GOP representatives in voting against the pay raises, but the margin of passage would be sufficient to override any potential veto by Republican Gov. Charlie Baker. Most of the raises would become effective immediately.

While the bill does not change the current $62,547 annual base pay for members of the Legislature, it would increase - dramatically in some cases - additional stipends paid to Democratic and Republican leaders, and to the chairs of key legislative committees.

The annual salary for House Speaker Robert DeLeo and Senate President Stan Rosenberg would climb about $45,000 to more than $142,000 a year, for example, while the heads of the House and Senate Ways and Means Committee would get a raise of $35,000.

Critics said pay hikes would be inappropriate at a time when the state faced continued budget constraints, and some Democrats have advocated for tax increases.

“It’s not difficult to argue that this bill is being rushed through to avoid public scrutiny and make it go away very quickly,” said Rep. Shaunna O’Connell. The Taunton Republican pushed unsuccessfully to return the bill to a legislative committee for additional public hearings.

Democratic leaders defended the measure, arguing there had been no changes in the additional stipends for lawmakers since 1982.

Rep. Brian Dempsey, a Haverhill Democrat who chairs the House Ways and Means Committee, said the proposed pay raises were “sensitive to the challenges we face,” and did not go as far as those recommended in 2014 by a special advisory commission on compensation for public officials.

The bill would boost Baker’s annual salary from $151,800 to $185,000, and for the first time would provide the governor a $65,000 housing allowance. Massachusetts is among a handful of states without a governor’s mansion.

Other constitutional officers including the attorney general and state treasurer would also get substantial raises, and annual salaries for judges would increase by $25,000.

Baker on Wednesday would not say if he would sign the bill if it reached his desk, but sounded skeptical about the wisdom of the salary hikes.

“We said in 2014 that we didn’t think that a pay raise made sense at that point in time and I don’t see that a lot has changed with respect to that,” said Baker.

Citizens for Limited Taxation, the group best known for spearheading passage of the property tax-cutting Proposition 2 ½, predicted legislators who support the bill would be punished at the ballot box in 2018.

The measure would also eliminate an oft-criticized system of per diem travel allowances for legislators, replacing it with a single annual lump sum payment to cover all expenses for lawmakers: $15,000 for those who live within 50 miles of the Statehouse and $20,000 for all others.

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