Kansas is poised to nearly double its lawmakers’ pay in 2025 in hopes of attracting more diverse members, only months after the legislature boosted the salaries of other state officials. A commission created by the Republican-controlled legislature to study lawmakers’ pay on Thursday approved a proposal to increase the compensation for rank-and-file members by nearly $28,000 a year, a 93% increase to nearly $58,000. Legislative leaders, who receive extra pay, would see proportionally larger dollar increases, so that the senate president and house speaker would be paid more than $85,000 a year, up from the current $44,000. The commission’s plan will take effect unless both legislative chambers vote to reject it by February 7th, a month after lawmakers convene their 2024 session.
When Kansas became a state in 1861, its constitution specified that lawmakers were to receive $3 a day in session, up to $150. They didn’t get a raise for nearly 90 years, with voters rejecting five proposals before approving pay of $12 a day in 1948. In 1962, voters said lawmakers’ pay could be set by state law.
