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House approves executive-compensation bill after amendments; some members object to raises
Summary
H.B. 288, an annual executive-compensation update, was amended on the floor and passed the House 47–25. Lawmakers debated fairness to rank-and-file employees and whether some salary increases should be delayed or indexed.
The House approved H.B. 288, the Executive Compensation Amendments, after floor amendments and debate over fairness and timing.
Representative Alexander, speaking for the bill, said the measure updates pay ranges recommended by the compensation commission and noted the need to attract qualified individuals to executive positions that oversee large agency budgets. He and others said prior practice had sometimes delayed executive increases when rank-and-file employees did not receive pay bumps.
Members questioned the cumulative effect of increases over recent years and sought historical percentages; Alexander said he did not have a five-year percentage to hand but acknowledged the bill provides raises recommended by the compensation commission in many years. Representative Ray opposed the bill on conscience, saying rank-and-file employees had received small or no raises while some executives would see double-digit increases under the proposed language. Representative Noel briefly moved an amendment tying attorney-general pay to other benchmarks but withdrew the proposal.
An amendment deleting coordinating language tied to another bill (lines 183–187) was adopted earlier on the floor. After debate, the House voted to pass H.B. 288; the clerk recorded 47 yes votes and 25 no votes. The bill will be referred to the Senate for further consideration.
