Madigan, Cullerton bonuses among largest in the nation
Only a handful of state legislative leaders earn larger leadership bonuses than Illinois’.
Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan earned $93,122 for his legislative service in 2014. His counterpart, Senate President John Cullerton, pulled in the same. With their $25,000 leadership bonuses, both earned nearly 40 percent more than the base salary given to Illinois state legislators.
Is this out of line with what other states pay their legislative leaders?
A review of state expenditure portals and a series of Freedom of Information Act requests find leadership in state legislatures across the country are often paid at much higher rates than rank-and-file lawmakers.
On average, the salary for house speakers and senate presidents was 50 percent higher than the base legislator pay in 2014. The biggest difference is found in Mississippi, where House Speaker Philip Gunn took home six times as much as other Mississippi representatives.
While the leadership premium in Illinois is below the national average, the state shoots up the rankings when measuring the absolute cost of lawmakers. Illinois state lawmakers enjoy the fifth-highest base salaries in the nation, and leadership bonuses are among the country’s largest.
Madigan’s extra $25,000 stands as the 10th-largest speaker bonus in the country.
Cullerton’s presidential bonus is the seventh largest in the country.
Not every state has high leadership premiums. The house speaker and senate president in 14 state legislatures made less than 10 percent above the base legislator salary.
House speakers and senate presidents take on many additional responsibilities, but does that justify some of the higher pay increases? Illinois should take a close look at states with more modest leadership premiums and consider following their example.
Image credit: Chris Bentley// WBEZ