The base gross monthly salaries of the members of the Parliament of Canarias exceed 4,000 euros, specifically 4,054, in fourteen payments, compared to 3,417.54 in the Senate and 3,366.99 euros in the Congress.
But it doesn't only happen in Canarias; in up to eleven regional parliaments, one earns more than in the national chambers. Among the highest salaries, those of the Basque Parliament, and the lowest, those of the Parliament of Galicia, there can be a difference of 90%.
As usually happens in everything related to the autonomies, when analyzing the remuneration of parliamentarians, one discovers total diversity, in this case both in the amount of salaries and in their regulation, which goes to the extreme in Castilla y León, where only the members of the Board and some deputies designated by the parliamentary groups receive a fixed salary while the rest receive allowances for attending plenary sessions and committees.
In the set of 17 regional parliaments, there are hardly any common circumstances in this area, such as the fact that the members of the boards earn much more than the 'ordinary' deputies, even double in the case of their presidents; that being in charge of a commission or being a group spokesperson also has an economic reward; or that in general, supplements represent a large part of the final remuneration of parliamentarians.
More than deputies and senators
As EFE has been able to verify on the transparency portals of the different chambers, the base gross monthly salaries in the Basque Parliament (5,879 euros), Extremadura (4,989.47 euros), Balearic Islands (4,635.02), Asturias (4,492.83, in this case with 12 payments, the rest 14), Navarre (4,415.47), Murcia (4,259.9), Canarias (4,054), Madrid (4,039.79), Rioja (3,682.87), Aragon (3,640.38), and Andalusia (3,599.78) are higher than those of the Senate (3,417.54) and Congress (3,366.99 euros).
Below are those of Cantabria (3,097.82 euros), Catalonia (3,039.79), the Valencian Community (2,678.01), Castilla-La Mancha (2,563.53), and Galicia (2,360.48 euros gross per month).
To these base salaries are added various supplements that increase the total remuneration and, in fact, can represent more than 50% of the parliamentarian's final income.
In the Congress there is an identical allocation for all deputies, that 3,366.99 euros per month, but to that must be added the complements according to the position, which in the case of its president are 3,683.74 euros as a member of the Board, 4,000.26 in representation expenses and 3,279.85 in discretionary expenses.
The president of the Senate has an allocation of 3,738.69 and also a complement of 5,457.72 and in both chambers, for example, a deputy who is the spokesperson for their group in one of the numerous commissions that exist receives 1,252.04 euros as representation expenses in Congress and 1,270.96 as a complement in the Upper Chamber.
The same happens in the regional parliaments. In that of Andalusia, the complement for the position of president amounts to 1,832.33 euros, that of the vice-presidencies of the Board and spokespersons of the parliamentary groups 1,471.08 euros, and that of the presidents and spokespersons of each group in the commissions 585.29 euros.
Being a member of the Board of the Parliament of Galicia means a complement, representation expenses, and discretionary expenses, which in the case of the president amount to 1,779.68, 2,144.53, and 1,101.25 euros per month, respectively.
And in the Parliament of La Rioja, its president, who has an annual allocation of 57,279.88 euros, is entitled to receive other remuneration "for social actions derived from the exercise of the position" up to a maximum of 518.38 euros per month, "not subject to any justification requirement".
For distance, for transport or for disability
In the Catalan Parliament there are complements for place of residence, so that deputies who live in a municipality in the metropolitan area of Barcelona add 729.56 euros to their base salary, and this amount increases to 1,026.95 euros for those domiciled more than 191 kilometers away.
The Assembly of Madrid contemplates allowances for commissioned attendance at institutional events outside the Community, which are 108.29 euros per day within the region and 140.39 euros per day abroad, in addition to transport aid which includes a pass for most of the metropolitan area for 615 euros per year and a taxi pass card for another 1,500 euros.
The ordering of these supplements - often called compensation - is very detailed in some cases, as in Castilla-La Mancha, where it is warned that it will be allocated "solely and exclusively" to cover travel and transportation expenses incurred by deputies "as a consequence of the fulfillment of their parliamentary duties".
In Les Corts Valencianes, a supplement for full-time dedication - since in many regional parliaments there are deputies without full-time dedication - of 5,720.96 euros and another specific one for disability of 8,710.92 euros is contemplated.
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