House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy Kevin Owen McCarthyMcCarthy says there will be a peaceful transition if Biden wins GOP lawmakers distance themselves from Trump comments on transfer of power McCarthy claims protests in Louisville, other cities are 'planned, orchestrated events' MORE (R-Calif.) on Tuesday expressed support for a proposal that would give members of Congress their first pay hike in years.

McCarthy said he would support legislation giving lawmakers a cost-of-living adjustment for the first time in a decade, saying he didn’t want the House and Senate to become a place where only the rich could afford to serve.

The remarks from the House Republican leader came a day after Democrats pulled a bill from the House floor that would have provided the pay hike following a backlash from swing-district freshmen — many of whom feared their votes for the bill would be attacked by GOP opponents.

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“I do not want Congress at the end of the day to only be a place that millionaires serve. This should be a body of the people and I think it's something that should be looked at,” McCarthy said at a press conference.



McCarthy acknowledged that sensitivity of the issue but said it's something Congress should consider.



“I know when you talk this subject about a COLA, a cost of living increase, it does an invoke an emotion — kind of an impulsive emotion. I think it's one we should pause and look at,” McCarthy said.



The House was initially set to consider a spending package that included funding for legislative branch operations. This year's legislative branch appropriations bill does not currently include language that blocks an annual cost-of-living adjustment like in past years.



But several swing-district House Democratic freshmen pushed back on the proposal and filed amendments that would block the $4,500 pay increase from taking effect. Democratic leaders then opted to pull the part of the appropriations package dealing with legislative branch spending from floor consideration this week.

McCarthy has previously expressed an openness to giving lawmakers a cost-of-living increase.

His comments on Tuesday lend bipartisan credence to the push.

House Majority Leader Steny Hoyer Steny Hamilton HoyerOn The Money: Anxious Democrats push for vote on COVID-19 aid | Pelosi, Mnuchin ready to restart talks | Weekly jobless claims increase | Senate treads close to shutdown deadline Vulnerable Democrats tell Pelosi COVID-19 compromise 'essential' Anxious Democrats amp up pressure for vote on COVID-19 aid MORE (D-Md.) has been advocating for the cost-of-living adjustment to help members afford maintaining homes in Washington and their districts, as well as raise salaries for staff.



“It’s been more than a decade,” McCarthy told The Associated Press last month. “I’ve got members who are leaving over this.”



Rank-and-file members of Congress currently make $174,000 annually, while members of leadership make more. The Speaker makes the most at $223,500, while the House majority and minority leaders make $193,400. Those pay levels have remained the same since 2009.



The Congressional Research Service estimated that the 2019 salary level would be $210,900 if lawmakers had received annual cost-of-living increases as established by a 1989 ethics law.