An Act To Set the Base Legislative Salary at $15,000 Per Year
Maine Legislature, Session 122, LD 0317
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: STRIMLING, DAIGLE, DUDLEY, DUPLESSIE, O'BRIEN, RICHARDSON, TWOMEY, GAGNON
Amends: 3 MRSA §2

Legislative Document 
No. 317 
H.P.241 
House of Representatives, January 19,2005 
An Act To Set the Base Legislative Salary at $15,000 Per Year 
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed. 
Presented by Representati ve TUTTLE of Sanford. 
Cosponsored by Senator STRIMLING of Cumberland and 
'7JJ~ /h. 7!/tU:~ 
MILLICENT M. MacFARLAND 
Clerk 
Representatives: DAIGLE of Arundel, DUDLEY of Portland, DUGA Y of Cherryfield, 
DUPLESSIE of Westbrook, O'BRIEN of Lewiston, Speaker RICHARDSON of Brunswick, 
TWOMEY of Biddeford, Senator: GAGNON of Kennebec. 
Printed on recycled paper 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1. 3 MRSA §2. first" as amended by PL 2003, c. 20, Pt. 
F, §l, is further amended to read: 
Each member of the Senate 
and House of Representatives, 
beginning with the first Wednesday of December 
6GGG 
2008 
and 
thereafter, is entitled to :b±G ... 8g .$15,000 in the first year and 
$+T+69 $15,000 in the 2nd year of each bienniumT-eHee~~-~Ha~-~f-a 
be~~6*a~e~-~-i6-~-~e€i~ie~~--&~-~~~~~--&~H~fi~&-~~~-EHe 
€eQe~a±-~~~-Se€~~i~y-~i&i&~~~~&-~~~~--a-~~~~~-~e~Qest 
W~EH-~Re-EKe€~~i¥e-~~€€~~-~-~~~i&1at-~~-&~&&i~-wi~HiH-eBe 
wee*-~~~e~-~~~~~-~emm~a~e&r-~Re-~~~~-~~H~i~~-te 
:b9T6+G-~-n-~-yealf-~--t-he--9~eBH~QFA. 
Each member of the Senate 
and the House of Representatives must receive a cost-of-living 
adjustment 
in 
annual 
legislative 
salary, 
except 
that 
the 
percentage increase may not exceed 5q
l:> 
in any year. 
Beginning 
December 1, 
6GG± 2009, the salary for each legislative session 
must be adjusted each December 1st by the percentage change in 
the Consumer Price Index for the most recently concluded fiscal 
year; 
except that no 
member 
of 
the Senate or the 
House 
of 
Representatives may receive a cost-of-living adjustment in annual 
legislative salary for 
~He-~-~e~Q±alf--Se-&s-ion--ef-~~-±6;!,st 
be~i6la~~~e---e~ 
the 
First 
Regular 
Session 
of 
the 
122nd 
Legislature. 
In addition, each Legislator is entitled to be paid 
for travel at each legislative session once each week at the same 
rate per mile to and from that Legislator's place of abode as 
state employees receive, the mileage to be determined by the most 
reasonable 
direct 
route, 
except 
that 
Legislators 
may 
be 
reimbursed for tolls paid for travel on the Maine Turnpike as 
long as they have a receipt for payment of the tolls, such tolls 
to be 
reimbursed when Legislators use the Maine Turnpike 
in 
traveling 
to 
and 
from 
sessions 
of 
the 
Legislature 
or 
in 
performance 
of 
duly 
authorized 
committee 
assignments. 
Each 
Legislator is entitled to mileage 
on 
the first 
day 
of 
the 
session, and those amounts of salary and expenses at such times 
as the Legislature may determine during the session, 
and the 
balance at the end of the session. 
Sec. 2. Statutory referendum procedure: submission at statewide 
election; form of question: effective date. 
This Act must be submi tted 
to the legal voters of the State at a statewide election held on 
the Tuesday following the first Monday of November 
following 
passage of this Act. 
The municipal officers of this State shall 
notify the inhabitants of their respective cities, 
towns 
and 
plantations to meet, in the manner prescribed by law for holding 
a statewide election, to vote on the acceptance or rejection of 
this Act by voting on the following question: 
Page l-LR0708(1) 
"Do you favor setting the base legislative salary at $15,000 
per year?" 
The legal 
vote by ballot 
cross or check 
the word "Yes" 
voters of each city, town and plantation shall 
on this question and designate their choice by a 
mark placed within a corresponding square below 
or "No." 
The ballots must be received, sorted, 
counted and declared in open ward, town and plantation meetings 
and returns made to the Secretary of State in the same manner as 
votes for members of the Legislature. 
The Governor shall review 
the returns and, if it appears that a majority of the legal votes 
are cast in favor of the Act, the Governor shall proclaim that 
fact without delay, and the Act takes effect 30 days after the 
date of the proclamation. 
The Secretary of State shall prepare and furnish to each 
city, town and plantation all ballots, returns and copies of this 
Act necessary to carry out the purposes of this referendum. 
SUMMARY 
This bill sets the base legislative salary at $15,000 per 
year starting in December 2008. 
The bill also sends the question 
out for referendum.