Kavanagh Sponsors Pay Raise for State Legislators

Arizona Senator John Kavanagh (R-LD3) sponsored Senate Continuing Resolution SCR1003 mandating a retroactive pay adjustment for legislators dating back to the last voter pay rate adjustment. Arizona statute requires voters to approve legislative pay rates, the last of which occurred in 1998, when voters authorized a pay increase from $15K/year to $24K annually.

Existing state law empowers the Governor to appoint members to the Commission on Salaries for Elective State Officers, which analyzes legislative pay rates and recommends adjustments. Those recommendations are then submitted to the voters in election years for approval. Previously, the Commission recommended salary increases ranging from $30K to $36K in 2000, 2002, 2004, 2006, and 2008, but failed voter approvals. During her tenure, Gov. Jan Brewer declined appointing Commission members, citing statewide financial woes. Ultimately, in 2014, she did appoint commission members who subsequently recommended a legislative pay rate of $35K annually. The measure went down in flames, garnering only 32% voter approval.

SCR1003, which passed through the Senate with House concurrence, changes the process by eradicating the Commission and requiring a 2026 election ballot measure authorizing an automatic annual Cost of Living Adjustment (COLA) adjustment of legislator pay rates commensurate with inflation. If approved by voters, the COLA would apply retroactively to the 1998 rate approval vote, effectively doubling annual salaries to $48K.

Although voters have vehemently opposed legislative pay hikes in the past, Kavanagh is hopeful that voters will see the inherent fairness of a pay rate that keeps up with inflation. However, the practical implications of a failure to approve the increase may be even more pressing. Lawmakers have been increasingly vocal about the difficulty of serving at a financial loss, highlighted by the recent announcement by Sen. Eva Burch (D-LD9), who was just reelected to a second term last year, that she is resigning from the Senate on Friday, March 14, 2025.

“It must also be said that I have been struggling to make ends meet and to find balance with my legislative work and my job as a healthcare provider,” said Burch, who is, by trade, a nurse practitioner. She added, “I know that I am not the first, nor will be the last, good person to find themselves a casualty of legislative pay. I hope the future will see Arizona lawmakers earning a living wage so that our constituents can be represented by working class citizens who understand the pressure of raising a family and struggling to make ends meet here in Arizona.”

Kavanagh laments the current rule mandating voter approval, which he stated could be determined less on fairness and more on the current voter opinion.

“Very often the mood of the public, based on other events the Legislature’s associated with, sometimes determines whether they’re for us or against us,” Kavanagh stated in an interview with Capitol Media Services.

He hopes the recent voter approval of statewide minimum wage increases will carry over to legislative salaries.

Kavanagh added, “If the voters said inflation’s OK for the minimum wage, I don’t think voters would be opposed to this.”

The Continuing Resolution will likely pass both houses, but it remains unclear exactly how voters will react to any resulting ballot measure.