NASHVILLE — Sen. Bo Watson, R-Hixson, said today he thinks an 8.1 percent increase in Tennessee legislators’ expense reimbursements that took effect Oct. 1 is “ludicrous.”
“I don’t know how their calculation gives us that,” Sen. Watson said.
The $14 per day increase boosted daily expense reimbursements for lawmakers on official business from $171 to $185.
Legislative officials say the reimbursements are tied to federal expense reimbursements in Nashville and rise automatically. The money pays for lawmakers’ food and lodging expenses in Nashville or on official business away from home.
Sen. Watson questioned why federal rates increased given that “there’s no cost-of-living increase for Social Security. How can that (federal expense reimbursements) go up when everything else remains the same?”
Andy Sher is a Nashville-based staff writer covering Tennessee state government and politics for the Times Free Press. A Washington correspondent from 1999-2005 for the Times Free Press, Andy previously headed up state Capitol coverage for The Chattanooga Times, worked as a state Capitol reporter for The Nashville Banner and was a contributor to The Tennessee Journal, among other publications. Andy worked for 17 years at The Chattanooga Times covering police, health care, county government, ...
Sounds like a good place to start cutting the state budget since they sya they are so short of our money.
Nobody is forcing Senator Watson or any of the other legislators to actually file for, or accept, such expense reimbursements. So we will see if he or anyone else chooses to lead by example, by claiming fewer days (or none at all). Or not.
Or login with:
New Account