That 39 members of the State Senate would agree to forego the Governor Romney-approved pay increase is understandable from a political perspective. The new Senate President, Robert Travaglini, is just now assuming control of that legislative body and he evidently feared some sort of voter backlash to the legislators who might accept the few additional dollars at a time when the State economy is in such dire straits.

As one member said, " I would have trouble defending taking the raise in pay to my constituents who have been laid off."

The base pay for members of the Senate and House is just over $50,000, and the raise would amount to about $70 a week. At the end of the day, perhaps the little additional dollars are not enough to make or break a legislator's household budget.

But there is a broader issue here: it is the question of just what is proper compensation for our legislators, those politicians we elect to represent us on Beacon Hill. Do they not work hard enough to justify the pay? Is less than $1000 a week a fair wage for our lawmakers? Indeed, is the salary enough to attract competent, well-intentioned people to pursue a career in the public's service?

Legislative pay has always been a political football, one that pols have routinely tried to find ways to justify. The state's voters will always object to any salary for the legislature- and yet, very few people would object to their own legislator receiving a fair salary. In fact, this year's pay hike was authorized several years ago by the voters, who overwhelmingly supported a pay raise based on measurable indices. That's why the new Governor approved this year's salary hike. It was the right thing to do.

It is too bad that the pols, always attempting to calculate the vagaries of public opinion, chose to turn down the raise. Somehow, in the Senate leadership's judgment, refusing the raise was a symbolic gesture intended to soften the blow when the real cuts start coming later this month.

We would feel better if the pay raise actually was important to these pols. For too many, the legislative salary is just a supplement to their outside income. Too many make much more in their private practices in law, insurance sales and the like.

But for the citizen legislator, the ones who make public service a full time occupation, the meager pay raise is likely to be important. Legislators have not had a payraise in two years and the law passed by referendum is intended to compensate them in a fair way. The $3500 increase is not likely to make anyone rich and comfortable.

From our perspective, our local legislators- Speaker Finneran, Reps. Walsh and St. Fleur, Senator Hart- are deserving of the modest increase offered by Governor Romney. These legislators are working people, like ourselves, and who among us would turn down a pay raise from our own employers.

Gov. Romney and Lt. Gov. Healy, each financially secure and independently wealthy, set the stage by announcing they would not accept their salaries. But the two executives chose not to return the funds to the state treasury, but rather used the money to offer higher salaries to hire members of their new administration. What does it say about life in public life when the Governor's press guy makes 150 grand to start, and the people we elect to represent us are expected to work for about one-third of that amount?

Our system of government, after all, is a representative democracy, and we have the right to elect people who represent the values and interests of each district. If the public continues to denigrate and cheapen the value of our elected officials, the inevitable result will be a lessening of the quality of people who seek public office.

And we will get what we deserve.

- Ed Forry