MA Lawmakers Cashing In On Pay Raises To Open New Year

MASSACHUSETTS — The phrase "timing is everything" comes to mind.

As the coronavirus pandemic wreaks havoc on the economy, Massachusetts lawmakers are now eligible for a raise in the new year due to an increase in the state's median household income, which is tied to the raise formula.

The 6.46 percent pay bump translates to a $4,280 raise for legislators' salaries. The state's senators and representatives are now eligible to make $70,536 annually.

Those legislators will also see a nearly 5 percent increase to their office expense accounts, with many more getting an identical bump to their legislative stipends, according to The Boston Globe.

The pay increases are tied to the usual compensation changes required every two years and a 2017 law legislators pushed through amid heavy criticism.

The raises come as the state's unemployment rate sits at 6.7 percent, finally falling to the national average. It had been well above the national average for much of the pandemic.

Lawmakers can accept or decline the raises.