Congress Helps Self to $3,100 Pay Raise

WASHINGTON — The Republican-controlled Congress helped itself to a $3,100 pay
raise on Friday, then postponed work on bills to curb spending on social programs
and cut taxes in favor of a two-week vacation.

On another major issue, a renewal of the Patriot Act remained in limbo as an unlikely
coalition of liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans sought curbs on the
powers given law enforcement in the troubled first days after the 2001 terrorist
attacks.

The cost-of-living increase for members of Congress—which will put pay for the rank
and file at an estimated $165,200 a year—marked a brief truce in the pitched political
battles that have flared in recent weeks on the war and domestic issues.

So much so that the issue was not mentioned on the floor of either the House or
Senate as lawmakers worked on legislation whose passage will assure bigger paychecks.

Lawmakers automatically receive a cost of living increase each year, unless Congress
votes to block it. By tradition, critics have tried to block increases by attaching a
provision to the legislation that provides funding for the Treasury Department. One
such attempt succeeded in the Senate earlier in the year, but the provision was
omitted from the compromise measure moved toward final approval.

House and Senate negotiators announced a tentative agreement earlier in the week
to pass a seven-year extension of the Patriot Act. Key senators lawmakers involved
in the talks balked at the terms, and officials said they would resume compromise
efforts when Congress returns to work in December.