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132nd MAINE LEGISLATURE
FIRST REGULAR SESSION-2025
Legislative Document No. 775
H.P. 498 House of Representatives, February 25, 2025
An Act Requiring Voter Approval of Legislative and Gubernatorial
Pay Increases
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed.
ROBERT B. HUNT
Clerk
Presented by Representative TUELL of East Machias.
Cosponsored by Senator MOORE of Washington and
Representative: MCINTYRE of Lowell.
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1Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows:
2Sec. 1. 2 MRSA §1, as amended by PL 2023, c. 488, §1, is further amended by
3 enacting after the 3rd paragraph a new paragraph to read:
4 Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, a measure providing for an
5 increase in the annual salary of the Governor enacted by the Legislature with an effective
6 date after the first Wednesday of January 2027 must include provisions requiring the salary
7 increase to be submitted to the legal voters of the State for approval or rejection at the next
8 general election held in the month of November following the enactment of the measure.
9 For the purposes of this section, "general election" has the same meaning as in Title 21-A,
10 section 1, subsection 19.
11Sec. 2. 3 MRSA §2, first ¶, as amended by PL 2023, c. 446, §1, is further amended
12 to read:
13 Each member of the Senate and House of Representatives, beginning with the first
14 Wednesday of December 2000 until the day before the first Wednesday of December 2024,
15 is entitled to $10,815 in the first year and $7,725 in the 2nd year of each biennium, except
16 that if a Legislator who is a recipient of retirement benefits from the federal Social Security
17 Administration files a written request with the Executive Director of the Legislative
18 Council within one week after the biennium commences, the Legislator is entitled to $9,270
19 in each year of the biennium. Beginning with the first Wednesday of December 2024, each
20 member of the Senate and House of Representatives is entitled to $25,000 in the first year
21 and $20,000 in the 2nd year of each biennium, except that if a Legislator who is a recipient
22 of retirement benefits from the federal Social Security Administration files a written
23 request with the Executive Director of the Legislative Council within one week after the
24 biennium commences, the Legislator is entitled to $22,500 in each year of the biennium.
25 Notwithstanding any provision of law to the contrary, a measure providing for a salary
26 increase for members of the Senate and House of Representatives enacted by the
27 Legislature with an effective date after the first Wednesday of December 2024, excluding
28 the cost-of-living adjustment provided in this section, must include provisions requiring
29 the salary increase to be submitted to the legal voters of the State for approval or rejection
30 at the next general election held in the month of November following the enactment of the
31 measure. For the purposes of this section, "general election" has the same meaning as in
32 Title 21-A, section 1, subsection 19. Each member of the Senate and the House of
33 Representatives must receive a cost-of-living adjustment in annual legislative salary,
34 except that the percentage increase may not exceed 5% in any year, and except that the
35 percentage increase may not exceed 3% beginning with the fiscal year ending June 30,
36 2014. Beginning December 1, 2001, the salary for each legislative session must be adjusted
37 each December 1st by the percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for the most
38 recently concluded fiscal year; except that a member of the Senate or the House of
39 Representatives may not receive a cost-of-living adjustment in annual legislative salary for
40 the Second Regular Session of the 124th Legislature, and except that a member of the
41 Senate or the House of Representatives may not receive a cost-of-living adjustment in
42 annual legislative salary for the Second Regular Session of the 125th Legislature and the
43 First Regular Session and the Second Regular Session of the 126th Legislature, and any
44 percentage change in the Consumer Price Index for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2011,
45 June 30, 2012 and June 30, 2013 may not be applied to the base salary. In addition, each
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46 Legislator is entitled to be paid mileage for travel at each legislative session to and from
47 that Legislator's place of abode at a rate of 55¢ per mile or the federal standard mileage
48 rate, whichever is lower, the mileage to be determined by the most reasonable direct route,
49 except that Legislators may be reimbursed for tolls paid for travel on the Maine Turnpike
50 as long as they have a receipt for payment of the tolls, such tolls to be reimbursed when
51 Legislators use the Maine Turnpike in traveling to and from sessions of the Legislature or
52 in performance of duly authorized committee assignments. Each Legislator is entitled to
53 mileage on the first day of the session, and those amounts of salary and expenses at such
54 times as the Legislature may determine during the session, and the balance at the end of the
55 session.
11SUMMARY
12 This bill requires that any measure providing for an increase in the annual salary of the
13 Governor enacted by the Legislature with an effective date after the first Wednesday of
14 January 2027 must include provisions requiring the salary increase to be submitted to the
15 legal voters of the State for approval or rejection at the next general election held in the
16 month of November following the enactment of the measure. The bill also requires that any
17 measure providing for a salary increase for members of the Senate and House of
18 Representatives enacted by the Legislature with an effective date after the first Wednesday
19 of December 2024, excluding the cost-of-living adjustment, must include provisions
20 requiring the salary increase to be submitted to the legal voters of the State for approval or
21 rejection at the next general election held in the month of November following the
22 enactment of the measure.
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