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Barnes rebuts Green on Per Diem for Tennessee State Legislators
She informed us that the payment of legislator expenses is specified by the Tennessee State Constitution in article 2 section 3.
This is covered in Tenn. Code Ann. §3-1-106, a portion of which is included below…
Initially members were able to set their own rates, but in the 1980s the legislature opted to use the Federal Per Diem rate for Davidson County which is currently $173.00 per day. This amount covers lodging, meals, and incidental expenses. “The statute which provided for the reimbursement of legislator expenses is not a permissive statute, the reimbursement is not optional” said Ridley. “Every State Legislator receives reimbursement. We deduct taxes when the legislator lives less than 50 Miles from the State Capital in accordance with Internal Revenue Service guidelines.” Only one legislator Nashville’s Senator Douglas Henry opts to return his reimbursement at the end of each year. Over the four years that Senator Barnes has been in office he’s received a total of $60,472.00 in Per Diem including several trips on official state business, and $4,661.81 in travel expenses for a total of $65,133.81 in reimbursements. When contacted by Clarksville Online, Senator Barnes said, “I have scrutinously adhered to all of the rules and regulations regarding Per Diem, in fact, I have collected less than the law allows me to. As far as I know, all legislators are required to collect the Per Diem, including those living within 50 miles of the Capitol, for whom separate tax rules apply.” Barnes concluded, “This is non-issue, you couldn’t find a more non-partisan topic if you tried. Per Diem is paid to all 132 members of the legislature in order to help defray the expenses related to their public service.” About Bill Larson
SectionsPoliticsTopicsElection 2012, Mark Green, Tennessee Constitution, Tim Barnes |
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