An Act To Increase the Salaries of the Governor and Legislators
Maine Legislature, Session 127, LD 0406
Committee: State and Local Government
Sponsors: MARTIN
Amends: 2 MRSA §1, 3 MRSA §2

Legislative Document 
No. 406 
H.P. 272 
House of Representatives, February 12, 2015 
An Act To Increase the Salaries of the Governor and Legislators 
Reference to the Committee on State and Local Government suggested and ordered printed. 
ROBERT B. HUNT 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative MARTIN of Eagle Lake. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  2 MRSA §1, as amended by PL 1993, c. 361, Pt. B, §1, is further amended 
to read: 
§1.  Residence; office hours; secretary; salary 
The Governor shall have his Governor's official residence is located at Augusta 
during his the Governor's term of office, and the Governor shall keep his the Governor's 
office at the State House open for the transaction of the business of the State during all 
normal working hours of the State House. 
In the absence of the Governor, his the Governor's private secretary shall be in 
attendance and the private secretary shall devote his the entire time to the duties of his the 
private secretary's office. 
Until the first Wednesday of January 1987, the Governor shall receive receives an 
annual salary of $35,000.  Beginning the first Wednesday of January 1987, the Governor 
shall receive receives an annual salary of $70,000.  Beginning the first Wednesday of 
January 2019, the Governor receives an annual salary of $120,000. 
A former Governor may accept as a personal gift from the State at the end of his the 
Governor's final term the desk and chair used by that Governor as Governor. 
Sec. 2.  3 MRSA §2, first ¶, as amended by PL 2011, c. 380, Pt. QQQQ, §1, is 
further amended to read: 
Each member of the Senate and House of Representatives, beginning with the first 
Wednesday of December 2000 and thereafter, is entitled to $10,815 in the first year and 
$7,725 in the 2nd year of each biennium, except that if a Legislator who is a recipient of 
retirement benefits from the federal Social Security Administration files a written request 
with the Executive Director of the Legislative Council within one week after the 
biennium commences, the Legislator is entitled to $9,270 in each year of the biennium.  
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 5% in any year, and except that the percentage increase may not exceed 3% 
beginning with the fiscal year ending June 30, 2014.  Beginning December 1, 2001, 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 the Second Regular Session of the 124th 
Legislature, and except that no member of the Senate or the House of Representatives 
may receive a cost-of-living adjustment in annual legislative salary for the Second 
Regular Session of the 125th Legislature and the First Regular Session and the Second 
Regular Session of the 126th Legislature, and any percentage change in the Consumer 
Price Index for the fiscal years ending June 30, 2011,  June 30, 2012 and June 30, 2013 
may not be applied to the base salary.  Beginning the first Wednesday of December 2018, 
each member of the Senate and House of Representatives is entitled to $24,126.22 in the 
first year and $17,112.75 in the 2nd year of each biennium, except that if a Legislator 
who is a recipient of retirement benefits from the federal Social Security Administration 
files a written request with the Executive Director of the Legislative Council within one 
week after the biennium commences, the Legislator is entitled to $20,619.49 in each year 
of the biennium.  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. 
SUMMARY 
This bill increases the Governor's salary in January of 2019 from $70,000 per year to 
$120,000 per year and increases legislative salaries in December of 2018 by the same 
percentage, from $14,073.63 for the first year of the biennium and $9,982.44 for the 2nd 
year of the biennium to $24,126.22 for the first year of the biennium and $17,112.75 for 
the 2nd year of the biennium.