The Skyland post. [volume] (West Jefferson, N.C.) 193?-1988, 1944-08-24
- !. '..'..'.' = -
IkNJl12zl1
klTz7NizWl
I'||E' ROBINSON
CONGREssMEN

eminent salary for his bed and
board, the people in his state
might be performing a charitable
act if, now and then, they would
send him bundles Of old clothes,
used automobile tires and other
contributions to make it possible
for him to give the appearance of
affluence which becomes a man
who has been eleced to that high
office.
For, as far as I can figure, it is
impossible for congressman to
live in the way he is expected to
live, on the paltry salary of $1O,-
600 a year. say "paltry'' with
some misgivings, because most of
us think of that amount, even in
these tax-heavy days, as being an
income on which a family could
live in comparable luxury. Less
than 2 per cent of the people in
our country earn $4,000 year
so $4,000 is definitely in what
is called the higher brackets.
But there is probably no other
type of $1O,000-a-year man who
is expected to do as much with
his money as a United States
senator or congressman. In the
hope that something might be
done to help out these forgotten
men of the white collar class, who
as the directors of our nations
welfare earn less than many a
wartime machinist, I want to ana
lyze here the expenses which a
senator or congressman must
meet out of the pay given to him
by the people of our prosperous
country.
BUDGET rent
In the first place, as with all of
the rest of us who pay income tax,
congressman doesn't actually
get $4,000 a year from the gov
eminent since he has to pay back
approximately $4,000 to the de-
partment of internal revenue
So his compensation, after tax
es, is about $4,000 a year. Out of
that he must maintain a substan-
tial home in his resident state
a home which the voters will be
proud to point out to visitors as
the residence of their congress
man. The cost of such a home
varies greatly in different states,
but even though it be a compare
lively modest one we could not
expect it to cost him less than
$4,000 year. That leaves him &c.
900.
Then, since he must spend eight
or nine months year in Washing
ton, where rents are sky-high, at
least another $500 is used up
for a place to live in that crowd
ed city. And in Washington he
is forced to do considerable en-
tertaining of visitors from the
home state, of other government
officials, etc. That must cost at
least another $1,000 a year. With
those conservative estimates for
rent and entertainment, the man
to whom we entrust our welfare
is now left $500.
Since the government only pays
travelling expenses at the open
ing and closing of a session of
congress, and since most congress
men must 60 home more often
than that, another $500 can be put
down as necessary travelling ex-
penses.
That leaves $4,000 out of which
he must buy clothes and food for
his family, send his children to
school, pay for gas, electricity, in
surance, fuel and meet election
expenses. When we think of all
the other items which a congress
man might have to include in his
budget, we can't see how he can
ever possibly afford to go to the
movies.
$4,000 difficulty
Of course the reason congress
doesn't appear to be poverty
stricken is that no poor man,
these days, would consider run
ming for congress. I know of no
congressman who doesn't have an
income in addition to his salary
either a fortune he has built up in
the past, or a business on the side
from which he continues to re-
ceive compensation.
But it hardly seems to be to the
best interest of our nation that the
men who are elected to this high
office are not paid enough to car
ry on their duties without de-
pending on a sideline for their
bed and board.
At the present time the total
payroll for congressman and SEN
ators is a little over $6,OOO,OOO a
year. An increase in that pay
m H.