Legislators Per Diem - Tres Gross

I read recently on Assemblyman Cameron Smyth’s website that he has declined the increase of his daily per diem of $170 to $173. My jaw hit the floor. Although I supposed he might be expecting congratulations for his NOBLE gesture, those three dollars is meaningless. You and your fellow ASSemblymen are getting $173 PER DAY for expenses while in session while I am being furloughed 2 days per month, which works out to about 10% of my salary. Do you know that I can feed my entire family of four on $173 PER WEEK? I have worked for the State of California for 18 years. I am being cut by 10%. I am not opposed to some type of cut. I understand and I get the shape the state is in. What I am FURIOUS about is that my pay will be cut but I still have to pay all the proposed higher taxes too. My pay will be cut but the legislators have the audacity to give themselves a per diem increase when most of us can feed our family’s for a week on what they get as their EXTRA PER DAY PER PERSON. THEY SHOULD BE ASHAMED! There are both single parents and two parent households that will not be able to afford childcare due to the furloughs, we have to pay higher taxes, higher gas prices, higher everything. Where is the equity? Exiting Assembly staff just got awesome retirement packages – with one staff even having received a 25% increase over the last 3 years. As a state employee, we can’t even get 2.5% cost of living increase.