NASHVILLE-An investigation has found that Senate Speaker Ron Ramsey gave pay hikes to 18 staffers last year even though no other raises were being allowed for state employees.
The Legislature amended the budget last year to say raises were contingent on how much the state made. Because revenues were low, no workers got routine raises.
But records obtained by WSMV-TV show the Senate staffers got what’s called a “classification upgrade,” which is a raise given to keep a salary competitive.
Those who received the 4 percent or 8 percent raises all either worked for committee heads or the Senate speaker and had their salaries approved by Ramsey, who said he gave them raises because they took on more work.
“There’s nothing wrong with that – nothing,” said Ramsey, who gave the Senate’s chief clerk a $6,000 raise to top his $147,000 a year salary.