Every so often, somebody tries to sell the public a sad little story about Indiana lawmakers being underpaid. Bless their taxpayer-funded hearts.
Indiana state representatives and senators get a base salary of about $33,032 a year. Then they collect $213 per day in per diem during session.
That means in a short-session year, with 30 session days, they pull in about: $39,422
In a long-session year, with 61 session days, they pull in about: $46,025
Across a two-year cycle, that averages out to roughly: $42,724 per year
And that is before mileage, reimbursements, possible leadership extras, outside-session per diem, and whatever other little government sprinkles come with the cake.
Now Granny ain’t buying the “poor public servant” routine.
This is a part-time legislature. They are not sitting in Indianapolis 365 days a year chained to a desk, eating vending machine crackers, and personally holding the roof up with one hand.
They show up for a limited session, pass laws that affect every working family, every school, every county, every city, every property owner, every business, and every local budget — then many of them stroll back home and act like the wreckage is somebody else’s problem.
That ain’t underpaid.
That’s overcompensated with benefits of influence.
Because the paycheck is only part of the deal.
They get the title.
They get the platform.
They get the access.
They get the lobbyist attention.
They get the invitations, the handshakes, the power, and the ability to write rules everybody else has to live under.
And what do Hoosiers get in return?
Property tax chaos.
School funding panic.
Local governments scrambling.
Budgets squeezed.
Working folks confused.
And politicians standing around acting like nobody could have predicted the consequences of the bills they voted on.
Honey, if you are getting paid to make laws, then reading the laws before you vote on them ought to be the bare minimum, not some heroic act of statesmanship.
Granny’s issue ain’t that lawmakers get a paycheck.
Granny’s issue is that too many of them collect that paycheck, take the per diem, cash the mileage, enjoy the status, and still somehow manage to act like accountability is a personal attack.
No, sugar. Accountability comes with the office.
If you want the salary, the perks, the title, and the power, then you also get the blame when your decisions make life harder for the people who sent you there.
So let’s quit pretending Indiana lawmakers are some underpaid charity case.
They are paid plenty for a part-time job with full-time consequences.
And judging by the messes they keep handing down to local communities, Granny’s starting to think some of them (Zimmypoo) owe the taxpayers a refund.
