The Georgia Senate on Tuesday overwhelmingly backed a 10 percent pay raise for many top judges and is expected to add three more judges to the state Court of Appeals.
The House still must agree to the plan, which will need to get both chambers’ backing by the time the session ends Thursday.
The pay raises have been thoroughly debated during the 2015 session, with some complaining that top judges are receiving far bigger pay raises than rank-and-file state employees.
However, the addition of three Court of Appeals judges — at a cost, with staff, of $1.5 million — wasn’t brought up until late Monday, when The Atlanta Journal-Constitution learned that House and Senate leaders had slipped them into the budget for fiscal 2016, which begins July 1.
Judges have been lobbying state lawmakers since before the 2015 session began for pay raises, saying they hadn’t received increases since 1999. Sen. Charlie Bethel, R-Dalton, however, said that over the years they have received some cost-of-living increases, as did other state employees. Superior Court judges in all but one circuit also receive county subsidies ranging from $5,000 to more than $65,000 a year. Lawmakers in many circuits have increased those county supplements over the years.
The deal struck between the House and Senate would give Supreme Court justices and Appeals Court judges 5 percent pay raises. A Supreme Court justice would make $175,600 starting next year, an Appeals Court judge would make $174,500.
Superior Court judges, district attorneys and public defenders would receive 5 percent raises, too. In addition, Bethel said under a proposal Gov. Nathan Deal made, those officials in circuits with accountability courts — a majority of the circuits — would see an additional $6,000.
Accountability courts, backed by Deal, require defendants to go to work, stay sober and get treatment. Most offenders enter the programs to stay out of prison and, if they graduate, get their charges dismissed. Judges say they perform accountability court work in addition to their regular duties.
With the accountability court supplements, many of the judges, district attorneys and public defenders would see a $12,000 increase.
That would bump the pay of some Superior Court judges in places such as Marietta, Augusta and Savannah to at or near $200,000 year.
The bill would also temporarily cap supplements in some circuits and create a commission to make recommendations on judicial pay.
Supporters of House Bill 279 say the big raises are needed to make sure top lawyers seek out judgeships when there are openings.
But the state seldom has a shortage of top lawyers wanting to be judges. And the raises are coming at a time when they’re sure to garner criticism. Most state employees are in line for a 1 percent raise.
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