Costa Rica’s congress shelves planned vote on 60pc pay raise after president threatens veto

Costa Rica congress shelves vote on 60% pay hike

SAN JOSE, Costa Rica — Costa Rica’s congress has shelved a final vote on a 60 percent pay raise for its members after President Laura Chinchilla promised to veto the measure.

Salaries for members of the unicameral congress would have risen to about $8,400 a month under a bill given preliminary approval this week. The legislators have been in office just one month.

The president said Wednesday she would veto the pay bill. About 15 citizens had filed legal challenges against it.

The bill was scheduled for a final vote Wednesday. But legislators from Chinchilla’s National Liberation Party who had mostly voted in favor of the raise dropped their support, and the vote was not listed on the congressional agenda.