Lt. Gov. Gary Herbert should be taking 55 House members to lunch.
On Thursday they voted him a $17,895-a-year raise. The 18 percent pay hike comes in HB115, sponsored by Rep. LaVar Christensen, R-Draper.
Christensen, who said Herbert is doing an outstanding job being an active partner to Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr., would make the lieutenant governor's salary 95 percent of the governor's.
Since Huntsman is now making $104,100 a year, Herbert's pay would go from $81,000 to $98,895.
Several House members said it makes sense to tie the second-in-command's salary to the governor's salary, since the lieutenant governor could take over the top office.
But Rep. Dave Cox, R-Lehi, said, "This bill is a mess." Since the attorney general is already making 95 percent of the governor, "we have some salaries in dollars, some in percentages."
The state auditor would still make $83,000 and the state treasurer $81,000 — their salaries not tied to anything.