Keating signs state worker pay bill

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- The president of the state workers union says he is pleased that Gov. Frank Keating has signed legislation that provides $2,000-a-year raises to Oklahoma's 36,000 state workers.

Friday, April 7th 2000, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- The president of the state workers union says he is pleased that Gov. Frank Keating has signed legislation that provides $2,000-a-year raises to Oklahoma's 36,000 state workers.

"This is the largest pay increase for state employees since the early 80's," said Ty Todd, president of the Oklahoma Public Employees Association. "OPEA is pleased that the pay raise has finally been signed."

The measure, Senate Bill 959, was passed by the Legislature last week. But Keating's signature remained in doubt until he signed the measure Thursday.

Keating had said Wednesday that he disagreed with pay increases for statewide elected officials that were included in the bill. In addition to state workers, the bill raised the salaries of judges and the next crop of statewide elected officials.

Keating said he decided to sign the measure after House Speaker Loyd Benson, D-Frederick, agreed to author a separate bill to prohibit elected officials from getting the raise.

"We must send a positive message to the taxpayers of Oklahoma that their government is responsible," Keating said.

Thousands of state workers rallied at the Capitol on March 1 for a pay raise.

But even with the raise, state workers will remain the lowest paid in the nation, Todd said.

More than 5,000 state employees are paid below the poverty level for a family of four, which is $16,700. To make matters worse, the state worker insurance program has announced that insurance premium increases of between 13 and 17 percent will go into effect July 1.

"Although we have a long way to go from 50th in the nation, this is an important step forward," Todd said of the pay raises.

The bill goes into effect Oct. 1 and will cost $38 million the first year, $51 million on an annual basis. Some employees will be paid out of federal funds.

Keating had hinted at a possible veto Wednesday after a bipartisan coalition of state House members committed in writing to sustain a veto of the pay raise bill.

Thirty-nine lawmakers -- 22 Democrats and 17 Republicans --promised to vote to sustain a veto in a possible veto override attempt on the bill. Lawmakers said they believed raises for statewide officials were "ill-timed and ill-considered."

It takes 34 House members to sustain a gubernatorial veto.

Keating said he decided to sign the measure after securing the promise from Benson and in an effort to bring state worker salaries "out of the basement." "I concluded that the prudent policy was not to jeopardize the state employee pay raise by putting them in a wedge play," Keating said.

The governor said Oklahoma's state workers "are some of the best in the United States and deserve to be fairly compensated." Since taking office in 1995, Keating said he has signed four state worker pay raise bills.

S.B. 959 gives state judges raises of up to $16,000 year. Because a 1997 law ties judicial salaries to those of elected state officers, the salaries of certain statewide posts would also go up after new electees take office.

Raises would go to those elected governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general, state treasurer, insurance commissioner, state auditor and inspector, labor commissioner and corporation commissioner in 2002.