4 ms·

A real problem is that public service is underpaid. I live in a state with a part time legislature that is paid $27k/year. I'm never going to run for office and

A real problem is that public service is underpaid. I live in a state with a part time legislature that is paid $27k/year. I'm never going to run for office and derail my life by earning next to nothing and being co-mingled into a system I find full of corrupt and detestable people. America has a perverse relationship with politics, politicians, and governance. Politicians do some of the most important work possible in our society, but by underpaying you only attract certain types of people. Either those just hungry for power, using office as a stepping stone to wealth. Or those already wealthy looking to maintain existing structures and protect their wealth. I don't mean to sound flippant. Our system of government is an evolved process settled on over millennia. It's really close to some local maximum. My gripes are mostly centered around complaining that we "all know" there are obvious problems with the system but there isn't some obvious "continuous" path of from here to a better system. If I were benevolent dictator I'd like to see something like futarchy. And even while saying that I'm not sure if it just appeals to my hyper rationalism or if it's genuinely better. I assume current legislator suffer from this same bias on all kinds of issues.

zdragnar 8y ago
Depends on where you are. My nearest major city council has a member that gets paid just shy of 100k a year and misses roughly a third of the meetings. Great job if you can get it.
raldi 8y ago
It's true; here in San Francisco, the annual city budget is $11B, and each of the 11 members of the Board of Supervisors makes $110,000 a year (which sounds like a lot until you find out that thanks to our housing shortage, HUD defines the local "low-income" threshold as $117,400). The 11 supervisors are the equivalent of senior executives. How much do you think a senior executive of a company with $11B revenue gets paid? As a result, we get supervisors like Aaron Peskin (who's a landlord on the side and pushes civic policy that obstructs the creation of new apartments) or Chris Daly (basically a clown).
- pound 8y ago
  it's $117,400 for the family of 4
  - emmett 8y ago
    You don't think a city supervisor should be able to support a family of 4 without being classified as low income?
refurb 8y ago
I live in a state with a part time legislature that is paid $27k/year. If it's part time I expect most of them have a full time job on the side? Similar to NH. A ton of reps that don't meet all that often. Everyone has a day job.

zdragnar 8y ago

Depends on where you are. My nearest major city council has a member that gets paid just shy of 100k a year and misses roughly a third of the meetings. Great job if you can get it.

raldi 8y ago

It's true; here in San Francisco, the annual city budget is $11B, and each of the 11 members of the Board of Supervisors makes $110,000 a year (which sounds like a lot until you find out that thanks to our housing shortage, HUD defines the local "low-income" threshold as $117,400). The 11 supervisors are the equivalent of senior executives. How much do you think a senior executive of a company with $11B revenue gets paid? As a result, we get supervisors like Aaron Peskin (who's a landlord on the side and pushes civic policy that obstructs the creation of new apartments) or Chris Daly (basically a clown).

pound 8y ago
it's $117,400 for the family of 4
- emmett 8y ago
  You don't think a city supervisor should be able to support a family of 4 without being classified as low income?

refurb 8y ago

I live in a state with a part time legislature that is paid $27k/year. If it's part time I expect most of them have a full time job on the side? Similar to NH. A ton of reps that don't meet all that often. Everyone has a day job.