On Thursday, Texas Republican State Rep. Brian Harrison (Waxahachie) filed legislation seeking to limit the salary paid to officers and employees of this state, as well as political subdivisions in the state, to no more than that of the governor of Texas. The governor currently receives $153,750 per year in compensation.
In filing the legislation, Harrison released a statement:
“State and local taxpayer-funded salaries have skyrocketed out of control. No bureaucrat in Texas has more authority, staff, budget responsibility, or constituents than the Governor of Texas. Bureaucrats should not get rich off the backs of hard-working Texans, and I’m proud to file a bill to ensure no taxpayer-funded bureaucrat is paid a higher salary than the Governor.”
The legislation, as currently written, applies to a “county, municipality, special district, school district, junior college district, or other political subdivision of this state.”
Notably, its application to school districts potentially addresses a growing issue we highlighted last year related to an increasing number of school district superintendents being compensated not only more than the governor, but also much more than the average Texan (who earns a salary of around $57,000). Last year’s report shows the 10 highest-paid superintendents in Texas were making more than $340,000 annually.
Lawmakers have until Friday, March 10 to file legislation during the ongoing 88th Legislative Session.
