EDITORIAL NONPERFORMANCE PAY LEGISLATORS COLLECT AN UNEARNED SALARY HIKE.

IN most lines of work, salary bears some connection to the employee's value. Hard-working, productive workers are generously compensated; slackers aren't. Pay raises are tied to performance.

Not so for California's lawmakers.

On Monday, 103 of the state's 120 senators and Assembly members gladly accepted a 12 percent pay hike. That brings their base salary to $110,880 a year - more than what legislators get in any other state. (New York's politicos, by comparison, are paid just $79,500 a year.)

Now, what exactly did our legislators do to earn their padded paychecks? Did they fix the state's structural budget deficit? Did they repair its crumbling infrastructure? Did they dramatically improve the quality of its failing public schools?

No, no and no.

All Sacramento can show for last year's work is relentless partisan bickering that resulted in no compromises and a worthless special election. Not exactly a meritorious performance.

Legislators whine that they need the extra money, that they haven't had a pay raise since 1998, and that what they make isn't much compared to all the lobbyists, lawyers and other muckety-mucks they hang out with. But legislators also get free state cars, $153 per diems every day the Legislature is in session, travel reimbursements and a killer benefits package.

All this for actually achieving little or nothing. Not bad.

State Compensation Commissioner Thomas Dominguez says that without the big money, political office would be limited to the ``rich and famous,'' and that paying legislators top dollar is key to attracting ``good quality citizens'' to office.

But let's get real. It's not like Sacramento draws many working-class Californians to its elite ranks. Nor have top salaries exactly put the best and brightest into elected office.

Kudos to the principled 17 who turned down this unwarranted gain, including Assemblyman Keith Richman, R-Granada Hills. As for the rest: Now that you're making the big bucks, it's time to start earning them.