The Senate passed legislation to amend recently adopted Amendment 94 so that the independent pay commission it authorized can set salaries for prosecuting attorneys as well as legislators, judges and statewide elected officials.

Prosecutors were left with the legislature in charge of pay raises and were looking at another small increase at best this year. Amendment 94, which allowed legislators to serve longer and created the pay commission so that legislators wouldn’t have to make the difficult political decision of voting for their own pay raises, is about to give a bonanza of pay raises to all those covered — 150 percent for legislators. All these pay raises carry the ancillary benefit of enormous increases in retirement pay when the day comes for those affected.

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The amendment allowed the legislature to make changes to the amendment.

The independent commission is expected to finalize its earlier pay decisions March 16. For the prosecutors, the bill would authorize a new study for them to be completed within 30 days. Once completed, the pay raises take effect as soon as they are sent to the state auditor.

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There are 27 28 prosecuting attorneys. 25 of them are paid $124,394 and three are paid $104,089.

The bill goes to the House.

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