Panel Proposing Pay Increases for Officials Has Ties to Ballot Issue

A panel recommending pay increases for Arkansas' top elected officials has its roots in a constitutional amendment approved by Arkansas voters in 2014. 

The Independent Citizens Commission is charged with reviewing and setting the salaries of:

• Governor
• Lieutenant Governor
• Secretary of State
• State Treasurer
• State Auditor
• Attorney General
• Commissioner of State Lands
• State Senators
• State Representatives
• Arkansas Supreme Court
• Arkansas Court of Appeals
• Circuit Court Judges
• District Court Judges

The seven-member commission is also responsible for making recommendations regarding per diem and reimbursements for state legislators.

The commission's creation was part of a more complex amendment known as Issue 3, which was approved by voters in 2014 by a vote of 428,206 to 388,459.

The Associated Press reports that the panel, which met this week, has recommended a 3 percent pay raise for the elected officials and judges. The commission is accepting public comment on the proposed increase for the next two weeks, according to the news article. 

Public comments to the commission can be made online here. 

The panel recommended a 2 percent increase in 2017, and a significant increase in 2015 after the legislation took effect as Amendment 94 to the state constitution.