WRONG TIME, WRONG MESSAGE FOR CABINET PAY RAISES
STATE HOUSE, Providence, RI – The Department of Administration (DOA) will hold a public hearing tomorrow, March 26 at 11 a.m. on Governor Dan McKee’s proposal to raise the base salaries of eleven of his thirteen Cabinet members. RI law allows that proposed salaries of directors and secretaries go into effect 30 days after DOA approves them, unless rejected by a Joint Resolution of the House and Senate. Raises were approved in each of the past three years, but this year, with the state facing a projected $250 million deficit, is different.
“The Governor cites regional competitiveness as a driver of proposed raises, so should we not also compare Rhode Island’s budget, population, land mass, and government effectiveness to those other states?” asked Senate Minority Leader Jessica de la Cruz. “Our $14 billion state budget makes our per capita spending 35 percent higher than neighboring states, while our business climate, bridges and infrastructure are ranked among the worst in the nation. Clearly, we are not getting the most effective use of our tax dollars under this administration. It long past time to establish an independent Office of Inspector General, as our neighboring states have already done, to increase accountability and affordability before rewarding highly paid political appointees.”
Yesterday in a radio interview the Governor stated these raises are warranted due to uncertainty coming from Washington, DC since January 20th. In response Leader de la Cruz states, “This is a ridiculous assertion. Our state’s difficulties are not the result of anything happening since January 20th, but rather the culmination of years of bad policy coupled with unchecked state government spending.”
“As average hard-working Rhode Islanders face staggering energy prices and historic highs for housing costs, the Governor’s proposal is tone deaf and irresponsible,” concluded Leader de la Cruz. “If this proposal passes, I will support a formal Joint Resolution with my colleagues to reject the proposed pay raise package.”
Elections underway in Florida and Wisconsin today have national implications. In Wisconsin, there's a state supreme court election, and Florida voters will decide two pivotal vacant House seats that could help to shift the balance of power nationally. Both parties have poured millions of dollars into each state, looking at the races as referendum on the direction of the country since Donald Trump's election victory. 
