House GOP leaders spring new bill on lawmakers
Tuesday morning, House GOP leaders sprung a new bill on lawmakers: One that would require the 200-plus attorneys in Attorney General Mark Shurtleff's office to give up their much-desired merit/no-fire status to accept larger pay raises this year.
"I absolutely, violently oppose this," a shocked Shurtleff said in the hallway outside of the House chambers, as he ran upstairs to find out what lawmakers were doing to him at the last minute. Legislators adjourn at midnight Wednesday.
While discussions about AG pay raises vs. merit status have been held in past years, Shurtleff said he was not warned by House Majority Whip Jeff Alexander, R-Orem, who will carry the new bill, that the issue was coming up this year.
Shurtleff is a Republican. And it's clear that some GOP lawmakers believe that "closet" Democrats work for him since they were hired during the 12 years that Democrats held the top law enforcement job before Shurtleff's 2000 election.
"I have no problems" with the personal politics of any of his assistant attorney generals, said Shurtleff. "Hey, I was an assistant attorney general" in a previous Democratic AG's administration. "So were most of my top directors now. I don't know what (his staffers') politics are, I don't care. They're professionals who deserve raises."
It appears, some lawmakers said, that there could be some opposition to Shurtleff's constant comparing of his attorneys' salaries to those paid to the Legislature's own attorneys in the Office of Legislative Research and General Council.
Several years ago, legislative leaders quietly gave their top attorneys large pay raises, some reaching 33 percent.
After those legislative bill-writers' raises became public in a Deseret Morning News story, Shurtleff renewed his arguments that his attorneys have fallen way behind in pay. And there was talk then of AG attorneys giving up their merit status in return for big pay hikes.
"If we got 23 percent pay raises then we could talk about" giving up merit status, Shurtleff, citing the average pay gap between his attorneys and legislative attorneys with the same experience.
"But when we asked our attorneys several years ago if they would give up merit status for parity most said no."
But lawmakers aren't offering parity with their own attorneys for Shurtleff's staff, just a step in that direction, said Shurtleff.
Alexander said his bill, which no one had seen this morning, would give assistant attorneys general a choice: Take a small pay raise this year and keep merit status, take a larger raise and give up the merit status, making them at-will employees who could be fired at any time.
Comments
- Man injured in Taylorsville stabbing 10:22 a.m.
- Dispose of old TVs 10:16 a.m.
- Man killed in motorcycle crash 10:16 a.m.
- Man pleads guilty in fatal crash 10:02 a.m.
- 16 killed in Somalia 9:23 a.m.
- Mass funeral for massacre victims 9:22 a.m.
- Obama: 'Africa not separate' 9:20 a.m.
- Former cop seeks parole 9:17 a.m.
- 5 hurt in latest Pamplona bull run 8:49 a.m.
- Delay in Jackson guardianship case 8:47 a.m.
- Jazz brass debate Millsap match
- LDS seminary principal arrested
- 2 men cited on LDS plaza
- Jazz finances not quite so bleak
- HBO defends U. logo use in 'Love'
- Reactions on Boozer speculation
- Cash for Clunkers to get rolling soon
- Utahns among Texans' investors
- Man spots his stolen car
- Jazz rookies quiet Thunder youngsters
- LDS seminary principal arrested
204 - Bronco collecting a galaxy of recruits
141 - Jazz talking Boozer trade?
137 - Jazz brass debate Millsap match
134 - Blazers may offer Millsap a contract
123 - Stadium of Fire flag burning was fake
95 - 2 men cited on LDS plaza
88 - Fairness of BCS debated
81 - Chaffetz eyes challenging Bennett
76 - Letters: Single-payer system best
75
By now you've probably read about the investigation that showed just how...
Sen. Scott Jenkins was name-checked by Jay Leno Monday night during his...
To See Ya:First your not packing the moving van! Your plagerizing Sean Penn's...
Is this some sort of new GOP talking point? It meets the criteria: A) no...
IN 2003 the Jazz drafted a point guard Named Mo Willaims he was a heck of a...
From reading the blog, posted from the gay couples own words, it is apperant...
to the 2:35 commentator, Who are you calling a pedophile? While I do...
I think it's wrong to judge someone of sinful acts, when, in actuality, none...
Is there any evidence other than text messages? Did he left his phone on his...
What planet are you from, just because someone does someting wrong doesn't...
These people were obviously trying to cause a stir. It is all part of the...
For one, u have no room to talk smack. That JV team has beat the u in every...



You can be the first to comment on this story.