Katz Blasts Legislative Leadership for Seeking Pay Hikes

As the economy continues its recovery, now is not the time for state lawmakers to vote themselves pay hikes, State Assemblyman Steven Katz (R-Westchester) said Tuesday.

Katz was highly critical of the Democrat-controlled Assembly urged fellow lawmakers to reject any increase in pay.

“I am trying to stop it because I am seeing the legislature that didn’t have the guts to pass something like that during this session before the election and they are going to bring us back in, in November after the election to vote ourselves a raise,” Katz said. “This is a state that spends more per capita on our state and local government than any other state in the union.”

He cited a new report that was released by Richard Ravitch and others.

Katz also renewed his call for a drastic reduction in the number of bills introduced each year from 1,000 to just 200; require that all bills include a companion bill in the opposite house; that all legislation include a fiscal impact statement and that home rule bills be eliminated.