The Life of a Legislator by Abigail DiComes

Description and Responsibilities

adicomes25 — 2024-03-20 17:25:09 UTC

A legislator is a person who makes laws or holds a position in a legislative body. Each legislator represents a certain area, and fills their daily work with meetings, preparations for voting sessions, and dealing with the general public's questions and concerns.

https://www.thesheridanpress.com/news/local/a-day-in-the-life-of-a-legislator/article_d7158d07-ef0a-5360-ac22-ce2eaf466eb9.html

Working Conditions

adicomes25 — 2024-03-20 17:32:07 UTC

In a legislative position, one would be found either in the Capitol, a personal office, or another government building. The hours are extensive, as legislators are expected to work over forty hours per week. Depending on the week, the schedule will shift, so working nights and weekends should be expected. This position is an individual position, bringing the opinions of their specific area to the table for vote, however, alliances in such voting systems should definitely be created. This job can create many hostile environments, especially in its consistency of talking about rights and beliefs. https://www.careerexplorer.com/careers/legislator/

Local Earnings and Benefits

adicomes25 — 2024-03-20 17:38:10 UTC

The average legislator in Pennsylvania can make about $106,000 per year. As a legislator, one would get a hefty amount of vacation days and paid holidays, as well as the comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage. A retirement pension is also a very common benefit as a legislator.

https://whyy.org/articles/pennsylvania-legislature-automatic-pay-increase-cost-of-living-adjustment/#:~:text=Pennsylvania%20lawmakers'%20base%20salary%20recently,the%20annual%20automatic%20pay%20bump.

Employment Trends

adicomes25 — 2024-03-20 17:49:17 UTC

Because this position is a government position, the numbers are specific to the state. For example, the state of Pennsylvania has 253 legislators elected for a term of two years, with 203 members in the House of Representatives and 50 Senators. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pennsylvania_General_Assembly#:~:text=The%20General%20Assembly%20has%20253,a%20term%20of%20four%20years.

Qualifications

adicomes25 — 2024-03-20 17:53:56 UTC

There are a generalized number of five qualifications a legislator must meet: age, a district residency, a state residency, duration of U.S. citizenship and they must be a registered voter. To be a senator, the age range is between 18 and 30 years old, while a state representative is 18 to 25 years old. College or a degree is not necessary, but is definitely a plus to have when wanting to be voted as a legislator. https://www.ncsl.org/elections-and-campaigns/eligibility-requirements-to-run-for-the-state-legislature

Educational Institutions

adicomes25 — 2024-03-20 17:54:30 UTC

Harvard, Yale, Georgetown, Columbia and USC are the top five colleges for legislators. However, as for Pennsylvania, the University of Pennsylvania is the ninth best college, in the sense that the college has the ninth most amount of graduates in legislative positions. http://beta-congress-colleges-fun.s3-website-us-east-1.amazonaws.com/

Job Benefits and Job Drawbacks

adicomes25 — 2024-03-20 18:05:51 UTC

A benefit of this job is the high base salary and given benefits. Another benefit of this job is that one can express their opinions, and can pave the way for positive change. A drawback of this job is that the job is not definite, as one depends on the votes from citizens to keep their job.