Congressman John Fleming is already making waves in Washington.
One day after his swearing-in ceremony, the Minden physician respectively declined a 2.8 percent pay raise Congress gave itself last year.
“With so many American families struggling to make ends meet in this current economy, there is no reason Congress should be increasing their own paychecks,” Fleming said. “Congress has contributed to the economic downturn we are now facing and should not be rewarded for their part in this crisis. I am anxious to begin working on solutions for the economy and finding ways to get businesses back on solid footing so that they can grow and create jobs.”
Fleming declined the wage hike in a letter penned to Congress’ Committee on House Administration. If the House Administration declines Fleming’s request to not receive the pay raise, he plans to donate the $4,700 to a charity in the 4th Congressional District.
Congressional members in 2009 will receive salaries of $169,300.
The increase is mirrored by similar raises for associate justices of the Supreme Court, who will see their pay go from $203,000 to $208,100, and Chief Justice John Roberts, whose pay will rise to $217,400 from $212,100. The salary figures were published in Tuesday’s edition of the Federal Register.
House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., will also receive a pay boost from $212,100 last year to $217,400, the same as Chief Justice Roberts. The majority and minority leaders of the House and Senate and Senate president pro tempore Robert Byrd, D-W.Va., will get increases from $183,500 to $188,100.
Dick Cheney, in his last year as vice president, will receive $221,100, up from $215,700. President Bush’s salary of $400,000 is unchanged.
Fleming, a Minden resident, is the first republican congressman from this community to be elected to congress.
A local family physician since 1982, the fiscally conservative Fleming has also been a successful businessman since 1986.
In addition to serving a term as parish coroner, he owns various non-medical businesses providing jobs for more than 500 Louisiana families.
Among his holdings are 30 Subways in Shreveport and northern Louisiana and Fleming Expansions, LLC, a regional developer for The UPS Store, a subsidiary of UPS. It continues to support more than 130 stores stretching across Louisiana, Mississippi and Texas.
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