OCR Text |
Show I?S LOOKING 1 PSfcgw GEORGE S. BENSON V&JT. PmldciilMatdi! SilUft V : J Start. Artaitsat PROPOSITION FOR CONGRESSMEN A commission of citizens appointed ap-pointed by the President has made a study of the pay scale for members mem-bers of Congress and has recommended recom-mended substantial raises. A higher high-er salary scale for Congressmen would be a good investment for the American citizenry. I think one should be approved at this session. ses-sion. It should be a straight salary raise and'-should not include any taxf ree allowances or provisions. In our present day American society so-ciety Congress is the most vitally important agency of government, the heart of the Republic. Its members mem-bers have a value to the nation that cannot actually be measured in dollars and cents. Only a few are independently wealthy, and this will likely be the situation in future Congresses. Therefore, for nearly all Congressmen and Congressional Con-gressional candidates the size of the pay check and the "take home" pay is a determining factor fac-tor in their career. Great Public Service The American people should be in favor of any reasonable measure meas-ure that would help attract the very highest order of citizens to serve in Congress. Once they are in Congress the members' pay is not calculated on comparative merit. Unlike employees in private pri-vate enterprise and other governmental govern-mental fields, Congressmen may not expect additional salary compensation com-pensation or promotion for unusual ability, extra hard work, long hours, or extraordinary diligence. For the type of intelligent, wise, honorable, self-sacrificing, public-spirited public-spirited and courageous citizens we need in Congress, the chief incentive incen-tive is the opportunity Congressional Congress-ional memebrship affords for great public service. The big reward is the inner satisfaction that comes from performing this service creditably. cred-itably. Yet, Congressmen and prospective pros-pective Congressmen are human. They desire for themselves and their families an improving living standard, the good things of life. It is to our advantage to place the salary scale for Congress in balance bal-ance with the challenging requirements require-ments of the job. The philosophy of Americanism is for reward on the basis of worth. Inflation and Inflation But while suggesting a pay raise for Congressmen, we citizens ought to remind them that the $10,000 salary they received 20 years ago was considered adequate at that time; and the $15,000 salary they began receiving five years ago also was considered adequate. Inflation made the $10,000 salary inadequate; inade-quate; and, finally, the $15,000 sal ary too. And a large part of the inflation was caused by permitting the Federal budget to go unbalanced unbal-anced during 17 of the last 20 years. In many of those years, Congress Con-gress should have balanced it! Another factor in making the $10,000 and $15,000 Congressional salaries shrink in ' purchasing power has been the constantly increasing in-creasing tax bite taken by the Federal Fed-eral government. The United States NEWS calculates that a Congressman drawing $15,000 today to-day actually has 33 per cent less purchasing power than in 1939 when he drew only $10,000! Inflation Infla-tion and higher taxes are the reasons rea-sons why. If Congressional salaries now are raised to $27,500, as the presidtntial commission suggests, the Congressmen actually would be only $1,322 better off than they wtre in '39 while 'drawing only $10,000, because of inflation and increased taxes. A Fair Bargain We citizens might well tell our Congressmen that the raise we are suggesting at this time, ' to bring their living standard in line with the value and importance of their service to our nation, is being approved ap-proved with two stipulations: (1) that Congress balance the 1954-55 Federal budget and thereafter keep the budget balanced; and (2) that ' a program of tax reduction and reform be continued until taxes are drastically lowered and are levied equitably, without favoritism. favori-tism. Above all, we should tell our Congressment that they must not legislate to themselves a tar-free allowance or adopt any other provisions pro-visions that would set them apart from other Americans. Favoritism to any group, whether in taxation or governmental service, is not in keeping with the philosophy of Americanism and would eventually eventual-ly destroy our freedom system. Congressmen need to get bitten by tht teeth of taxes just as deeply as the rest of us are bitten. |