Its one thing to beef about your pay; but its another to have critical data on your side.
Such is the case for those who work in our local and state court systems.
For the past several years, our judges have stated that they and their support staff are not only underpaid but more importantly, are falling desperately behind their counterparts elsewhere.
The danger? We are losing valuable talent.
In his annual address earlier this month, Kansas Supreme Court Chief Justice Lawton Nuss stated:
* With an annual salary of $125,000 per year, Kansas district court judges earn $32,000 less than the national average, putting them dead last among their peers nationwide.
* The states investment in the judicial branchs 1,600-plus employees, including its 267 municipal and district court judges, is less than 1 percent of the states budget.
And thats after two consecutive years of (minimal) pay raises.
In his talk, Nuss requested the legislature appropriate an additional $22 million for the judicial branch for next year.
