You know it’s a tough economy when even state legislators need financial help from their parents. Well, not all of them. Just the ones who refuse to return to the state capitol to collect their paychecks and/or do their jobs.
According to [Middleton State Sen. Jon] Erpenbach, taxpayers and unions are not fitting the bill. “The costs right now are coming out of my pocket. My mom and dad are helping out, and my aunt and uncle who live in the area are also helping me out.” As for the other 13? “Nobody is taking their per diem,” says Erpenbach. “Nobody is being put up by the unions, as some people like to think. We’re all paying for this out of our pocket.”
A state senator in Wisconsin makes $49,943 annually.