Legislature needs to abolish state salary commission, a failed experiment
As it stands today, Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy, his top employees and legislators will get automatic pay increases every two years under state law to offset the effects of inflation on their wages.
“I’m glad to hear they’re taking care of themselves,” a lower-level state employee cracked Thursday when informed of how state leaders are taking care of themselves.
The pay raises linked to inflation won approval Wednesday from the State Officers Compensation Commission, an organization that Gov. Mike Dunleavy has treated like a joke since 2023.
The automatic pay raises will become state law unless the Legislature and the governor approve a law to override the actions of the three people on the compensation commission.
The good news is that someone will introduce a bill to override the salary commission report, and I expect it will gain enough support to force hearings and a vote.
Legislators, who received a 67 percent raise a couple of years ago, will want to distance themselves from the salary commission and any suggestion that they are taking care of themselves.
This will be a great opportunity to amend the bill and to reject the automatic raises and to eliminate the commission.
In theory, a real independent commission would work.
But Dunleavy destroyed the credibility of this organization in 2023 and it can’t be salvaged. Dunleavy removed all former members of the commission two years ago and replaced them with a compliant group and a prearranged plan to approve raises for Dunleavy, the lieutenant governor, top Dunleavy employees and legislators.
The group met for less than 15 minutes before approving the prearranged plan. It was the only meeting that the group ever had.
The commission, created by a state law to allow legislators to avoid having to vote for pay raises for themselves, is supposed to “review the salaries, benefits and allowances of members of the legislature, the governor, the lieutenant governor, and each principal executive department head.”
The law is set up so that raises approved by the commission automatically go into effect unless a new law is enacted to overturn the commission’s decision. Because of that high hurdle, it’s not a typical advisory board, but one of the most powerful groups in state government.
In March 2023, Dunleavy got rid of the old salary commission members because the group refused to endorse pay raises for legislators, only for top executive branch officials, which guaranteed the 2023 Legislature would kill the raises Dunleavy wanted for himself and his staff.
During his time on the commission, Cruise had opposed significant raises for legislators and favored cutting their pay. “Our commission could have reduced their compensation in an effort to change their ineffective behavior,” Cruise wrote in 2021.
Cruise, a former Dunleavy campaign worker, was removed from the voluntary salary commission and rewarded with a state job by Adam Crum, revenue commmissioner.
He is still on the payroll as a special assistant to Dunleavy.
Dunleavy lined up new salary commission members who would do what he wanted—Miles Baker, Duff Mitchell and Donald Handeland. They led the way to raise the pay of legislators by 67 percent to $84,000, greasing the skids for Dunleavy and his top staff to also get pay raises.
The commission approved the plan with no real debate and a unanimous vote, violating a law that requires 20-day public notice of commission meetings. The raises went into effect.
Dunleavy rewarded Handeland with a seat on the State Personnel Board, arbiter of state ethics for the executive branch. The Legislature confirmed his appointment a year ago.
The 15-minute meeting was the only one that Baker, Mitchell and Handeland ever took part in as members of the commission.
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