DOVER — Judges, cabinet secretaries and elected officials are set to receive pay increases after a state panel recommended them and the Senate shot down a resolution rejecting those hikes.

Every four years, the Delaware Compensation Commission reviews the salaries of top officials across the three branches of government to determine whether they are commensurate with the private sector and other nearby states. Formed in 1984 as a way to take politics out of the equation and fairly determine salaries for a handful of key state employees, all of whom are elected or appointed, the commission aims to keep salaries for elected officials, judges and cabinet secretaries competitive, thus allowing the state to attract and keep talented people.

This is particularly relevant in the judicial field, where judges earning six figures could be making several times more working for a firm. Delaware derives a large portion of its economy from the legal services industry, and its judges are widely respected.

Prior to the advent of the commission, legislators had been known to punish officials in the executive branch by cutting their salaries. According to author and longtime Delaware political journalist Celia Cohen, the General Assembly slashed the pay of Glenn Kenton, secretary of state from 1977 to 1985, forcing him to take up legal work on the side, for instance.

A report officially released by the commission earlier this month suggests pay bumps for about 230 high-ranking positions in state government. While the exact amount varies based on position, most of the recommended raises are at least 10%. Nearly all are phased in over four years.

The findings from the six-person group, which is made up of members appointed by the governor and top lawmakers, automatically become law unless the General Assembly rejects them within 30 days after they are submitted. The report was finished Jan. 12, and with lawmakers currently on break until March, the recommended pay raises are set to take effect in the future after the Senate on Wednesday voted down a Republican-backed proposal to reject the increases.

The first round of the raises will likely go into effect in the summer.

While five of the first six commission reports were accepted by the legislature and thus became law, pay raises were not recommended in 2009 given the state was battling through the Great Recession, and legislators passed resolutions rejecting the suggested increases in 2013 and 2017.

“The Commission is of the view that the decisions not to implement Commission recommendations since 2005 risks the future ability of State government to attract and retain talented leaders. This Commission is of the firm view that the proposal is not thought of as salary increases but reflects appropriate salary adjustments for positions covered in this report,” the new report states.

The most recent iteration of the commission calls for double-digit percentage increases in earnings for judges, the state treasurer, auditor, insurance commissioner and a number of agency director positions.

All of those individuals currently make six figures, with most judges earning at least $179,000 annually.

Those positions (minus the governor) have received regular pay raises given to state employees at times, including three of the past four years, but otherwise have not had their compensation adjusted since 2005.

Wednesday, Senate Republicans attempted to block the hikes, arguing it’s unfair to reward a handful of people while so many are suffering due to coronavirus.

“I think in the wake of a pandemic — and not even in the wake yet, it’s still going on — in the midst of a pandemic when countless Delawareans have lost their jobs or their businesses, that we shouldn’t be in the business of raising salaries,” said Sen. Colin Bonini, a Dover Republican.

Majority Leader Bryan Townsend, a Newark Democrat, noted the report contains new language to ensure pay raises go into effect when other state employees see their salaries increased.

“To address current events, the Commission proposes that its proposals be implemented only when the General Assembly determines that the economic health of the State is such that a general salary increase” for others is recommended, the findings state. The budget proposal unveiled by Gov. John Carney last week calls for a $500 raise on their annual salary for most state workers.

“This is deserving of thought and reflection and taking it seriously,” Sen. Townsend said. “This is a form of investment in our public infrastructure. It’s not in the bond bill, it’s not physical roads and bridges, but it’s the kind of personnel investment that enables our state to be run well, that enables our constituents to be served well.”

Rejecting the report is easy and “the politically theatric thing to do,” Sen. Townsend said, but it’s also “a disservice to how the system’s supposed to work.” Describing the resolution as a slap in the face to the individuals who served on the commission, he urged colleagues to vote down the proposal and thus support the “modest, prudent and apolitical” report and the “fundamental idea of public investment” it represents.

The resolution failed 14-7 on party lines.

A spokesman for Gov. Carney wrote in a text message: “The Commission smartly linked any salary increases for judges and others to a trigger: they don’t happen unless the rest of the state workforce gets a raise. Governor Carney recommended raises for all state employees in his budget proposal — workers across state government who have stepped up for their neighbors throughout this pandemic. The Governor will keep making workforce investments a priority to help attract even more talented and committed public servants across the state workforce.”

Recommendations

The report recommends grouping cabinet secretaries into two tiers instead of the current four. Their pay, which currently ranges from $123,333 (secretary of labor, secretary of agriculture and director of state housing) to $165,055 (secretary of education and chief information officer) would increase by, on average, 13% over four years.

Annual wages for the heads of each cabinet agency would then vary from $145,001 (secretary of labor, secretary of agriculture, director of state housing, secretary of human resources, secretary of natural resources and environmental control and adjutant general) to $178,644 (secretary of education, chief information officer and secretary of health and social services).

While the treasurer currently earns $117,582 with the auditor and insurance commissioner making $112,667, the report suggests increasing all three to $136,947 over the next four years.

Under the commission’s recommendations, the attorney general would have a pay raise of a little more than 8% over four years, bringing the officeholder to $162,249, and the lieutenant governor would see a one-year 2% jump from $82,239 to $83,884.

The head of the Office of Defense Services, the only non-elected, non-judicial and non-cabinet official on the list, would make $156,703, up from the current $144,769.

The governor’s salary would increase from $171,000 to $185,096, although state law means the change would not take effect until after a new officeholder is sworn in in 2025.

Lawmakers would receive a 2% boost in their base salary of $47,291, as well as their expense accounts, which currently total $7,334 per person.

The various supplements given to about 70% of legislators for holding leadership position or serving on special committees would see an identical bump. As it stands now, those supplements range from $3,852 to $20,291.

Most judges, meanwhile, would watch their salaries rise at least 13% over the next four years.

Under that scheme, the chief justice, currently the state employee receiving the highest set salary (though not the highest-paid state employee overall) would go from $206,148 to $236,327.

The other members of the Supreme Court, along with all judges on the Superior, Chancery and Family courts and the top member of the Court of Common Pleas, would surpass $200,000.