Some New York state legislators are debating the authority of a special committee that has called for limiting their outside income while giving them their first pay raise in nearly 20 years.

WHAT PAY RATES ARE THE COMMISSION RECOMMENDING?

The pay commission backed pay raises for the governor, the lieutenant governor, attorney general, and state comptroller as well as the 213 members of the state Assembly and Senate, as well as cabinet officials in the governor's administration.

At the same time, the compensation commission backed limits to how much lawmakers can earn in the private sector, placing a cap of 15 percent of their public salary. The commission also backed ending stipends, or "lulus," for most leadership positions in the state Assembly and Senate.

The limit on outside income would take effect at the end of 2020.

Under the recommendations outlined on Thursday, the governor would be paid $250,000 by 2022, up from the current $179,000. Lawmakers would also receive a phased-in hike from $79,500 to $130,000 by 2021.

The median household income in New York is $62,909.

PROPOSED PAY RATES

2019: $200,000

2020: $225,000

2021: $250,000

State legislators:

Current: $79,500

2019: $110,000

2020: $120,000

2021: $130,000

A POTENTIAL RAISE FOR THE FIRST TIME IN 20 YEARS

The committee officially released its final report Monday that calls for the first pay raises while strictly limiting outside income, which would make the current part-time legislature a full time one.

That change had been favored by Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who called into a radio show Monday morning.

"I also agree that there should be a ban on outside income. I've said that for many, many years," Cuomo said on "The Brian Lehrer Show" on WNYC. "The commission found their way to that. So I think that's good news."

The commission's recommendation that stipends lawmakers have received for leadership posts largely be terminated is much to the chagrin of State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie, who relies on stipends to reinforce loyalty among members.

Cuomo said he expects the ban on outside income to end up in court. "Sure, there will be a challenge to the commission report because the Republicans in the legislature don't want the ban on outside income," the governor said.

The law that created the commission took shape behind closed doors and passed as part of the budget in March. Some lawmakers seemed unfamiliar with just how much power it had bestowed upon the committee to make changes. Albany has been rocked by corruption scandals over the last four years, including the convictions of leaders in both houses.

For lawmakers, the pay raise would be the first pay raise in 20 years. Pay hikes for lawmakers have long been tied up in politics, with the last salary increase linked to an expansion of charter schools and a reform that stipulated lawmakers would not be paid while the budget was left unapproved after the start of the new fiscal year.

In subsequent years, pay raise pushes have fallen flat. Judicial pay, which had been increased in tandem with legislative salaries, was decoupled from this process and subjected to a pay commission.

The legislative pay commission was formed as a means of removing politics from the matter, but also insulating lawmakers from taking a vote for an issue that is likely anathema to voters for a legislature known for its parade of corruption arrests in recent years.

Still, lawmakers have been increasingly vocal about the need for a pay raise. Heastie told the pay commission last week that many of his members face middle class financial concerns, such as student debt, caring for children, and aging family members.

Many lawmakers — especially those from high-cost areas in and around New York City — have long argued that their pay hasn't kept up with inflation and doesn't reflect work they do outside of the six-month legislative session. But those same lawmakers have been reluctant to vote themselves a pay raise, especially following a number of high-profile political corruption convictions in recent years.

About a third of all lawmakers earn a significant amount of money from outside work. The proposals suggested by the committee are similar to the rules for members of the Congress.

Similar proposals have been blocked in the Senate in the past, but that chamber's new leader, Sen. Andrea Stewart-Cousins, D-Yonkers, said Thursday that she believes her colleagues would support a cap on outside pay. Democrats won control of the Senate from Republicans in last month's elections.

"My Senate Democratic colleagues and I continue to support that,'' she said in a statement.

Good-government groups have long pushed for broader reforms to be included with any salary increase. Blair Horner, director of the New York Public Interest Research Group, said Thursday that New Yorkers aren't likely to support an increase in legislative salaries that doesn't come with greater ethics reforms.

"I think it will resonate poorly,'' he said of the pay hike.

The four-member pay committee is made up of State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli; New York City Comptroller Scott Stringer; SUNY Board of Trustees Chairman Carl McCall, who is also a former state comptroller; and former New York City Comptroller Bill Thompson.

Barring any action by the legislature, these recommendations will automatically take effect.