The D.C. Council: Because Things Don't Ban Themselves

The D.C. Council, whose greatest hits include prescription drug price controls and our imminent smoking ban, says it's time for a pay raise. And not just any raise: a raise that will elevate them well beyond their counterparts in such backwaters as New York City and Boston. Via the Washington Times:

One bill under consideration would lift their annual salaries from $92,530 to $115,000—a 24 percent increase. Another bill would raise their pay to $122,530—a 32 percent increase.

 Yesterday, the lawmakers said they deserve a pay raise because they haven't had one in years and their current pay is not adequate for the long hours they work.

 "It tires me to hear any reference to this being a part-time job," council member Jim Graham, Ward 1 Democrat, said during a council meeting. "This has been more than a full-time engagement. This has been my life for eight years."

The public hearings come after an attempt to pass "emergency legislation" for a 51 percent pay hike. That bill's sponsor says he's struggling to support his family on a $92,000 part-time job.

Shira Toeplitz has a better idea.