Congress opts to pass on pay raise

Rep. Jim Matheson, D-Utah, had vowed to renew his annual fight this year against Congress receiving an automatic pay raise. On Tuesday, he won that battle without firing a shot.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Majority Leader Steny Hoyer told their Democratic caucus that the House will not get a pay raise in fiscal 2010, saying obtaining it would send the wrong message while many Americans are struggling in the recession.

After receiving news of the leaders' intention, Matheson said, "This is totally the right thing to do."

He added, "Members of Congress are already so much better off than most of the families dealing with this economic crisis. As I have for the past eight years, I'll continue to fight for an up-or-down vote by House members on the issue of the pay raise."

On Jan. 1, Congress received an automatic $4,700 pay raise — up 2.8 percent to an annual salary of $174,000 a year. Just before that took effect, Matheson blasted it, saying "the notion that Congress should be having an automatic pay raise without even a vote just doesn't pass the smell test."

A 1989 law gives members of Congress an annual cost-of-living increase automatically, unless Congress acts to stop it. Since Matheson entered Congress, he has attempted every year to force Congress to vote on whether to accept the raise. He always failed (although one year Congress chose not to take a raise while the minimum wage was not raised).

He donates his raise each year to charity.

Some question exists whether Congress would have received a pay raise anyway — because annual increases are based on a formula that might not allow them given the weak state of the economy.

Still, Hoyer told reporters that he and Pelosi acted early because they were afraid that if the index brought a raise for the House, the public would react angrily.

Pelosi told Roll Call, "Because of the condition of our economy and the national crisis our country is in, the leadership will be instructing the Appropriations Committee not to include a (cost-of-living adjustment) for next year in the appropriations bill."

E-mail: lee@desnews.com