The gas tax was doubled in July after Governor Pritzker’s new budget was approved. This is causing many Illinois residents to shell out more money at the gas pump.
Lawmakers, on the other hand, saw a bump in their paychecks. Their salaries were increased by 2.4% due to the same budget.
Lawmakers also saw an increase in their cost-of-living.
According to published reports by Springfield. IL TV station WICS and Jacksonville, IL radio station WLDS, in addition to their base salary, Illinois lawmakers can also receive 10,000 dollars from committee chairmanship stipends.
The National Conference of State Legislatures classifies Illinois as “full-time lite” which means that they serve smaller districts and work shorter sessions than full-time lawmakers. Despite that, they are highly paid and perform legislative work for at least 80% of their job and are in session for 70 days a year.
Of all 50 states, Illinois lawmakers take home the fourth-highest salary only trailing Michigan, Pennsylvania, and California. States that all have full-time legislatures.
