PAY COMMISSION'S PAY INCREASES REASONABLE

Unless the Missouri Legislature rejects it, the state's elected officials will get 5.5 percent pay increases in each of the next two fiscal years, and associate circuit judges will see an additional $1,000 in their base pay.

The Citizens' Commission on Compensation for Elected Officials established the raises after hearings around the state.

If it chooses, the Legislature can reject the raises but only in their entirety.

Some associate circuit judges went before the 22-member commission to request pay increases. They currently make $96,000 a year and would get $107,905 in fiscal year 2003. Law firms in Missouri hire top lawyers out of law school at salaries up to $90,000 annually, so the increase should help assure that qualified candidates seek associate circuit judgeships.

It is likewise appropriate that salaries of the state's top elected officials stay competitive with private enterprise, and 5.5 percent raises over two years are reasonable amounts to do just that.