Arizona legislators may soon see their salaries tied to the cost of living under a newly proposed ballot measure. The Senate passed SCR 1003 on Thursday, a resolution that would automatically adjust lawmakers’ salaries each year based on inflation or deflation.
State legislators have not received a pay increase since 1998, when voters approved raising their salaries to $24,000 per year.
The vote on the measure came just a day before Sen. Eva Burch stepped down from office. Burch, who announced her resignation earlier this month, pointed to the financial strain of serving in the legislature as one of her reasons for leaving.
“I hope Arizona lawmakers will one day receive a living wage so that working-class citizens—those who truly understand the realities of raising a family and making ends meet—can step forward and serve,” she said.
