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In 1944, we taxpayers paid a salary of $2,500 to our legislators in the Illinois General Assembly. In 1984, we paid them $28,000 (plus $17,000 for expenses). This amounts to an increase of over 1,000 percent, not counting the expense account.
In 1944, the farmer received $1.03 for a bushel of corn. Today, the price of corn is $2.66. The farmer has received a 158 percent increase.
Is this parity?
