JACKSON, Miss. (AP) — Mississippi senators have rejected a proposal to give a $1,000 pay raise to all state employees. But, a top budget writer says legislators still might consider a raise for lower-paid government workers.
Democratic Sen. Hob Bryan on Tuesday proposed the across-the-board pay raise. He says employees’ paychecks have remained stagnant while their insurance and retirement expenses have increased.
Twenty-seven senators voted against his proposal and 24 supported it.
The state Personnel Board oversees about 31,000 government employees. Senate Appropriations Committee Chairman Eugene “Buck” Clarke says 28,785 of them have received some form of pay raise in the past four years.
Republican Clarke is seeking information about those who haven’t gotten raises and says there’s a chance that a final budget plan could include some money for them.
