Legislative briefs: Panel OKs raising Arkansas Game and Fish Commission director’s maximum salary by $37,000

The Legislature’s Joint Budget Committee voted Thursday to approve a proposal to increase the maximum authorized salary from $152,638 to $190,000 a year for the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s director in the coming fiscal year.

The committee voted to add the amendment proposed by Rep. Jeff Wardlaw, R-Hermitage, to Senate Bill 21, which is the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission appropriation for personal services and operating expenses in fiscal 2025, which starts July 1.

Commission Director Austin Booth is paid a salary of $152,637, according to the Arkansas Transparency website.

Afterward, Wardlaw said the Arkansas Game and Fish Commission’s director deserves a boost in pay based on what the director is paid compared to the salaries of agencies of equal size.

The commission said in a written statement the maximum authorized salary for the director has not been raised since the fiscal session in 2018.