A California lawmaker who proposed legislation that would have given Los Angeles Unified school board members six-figure salaries said Wednesday that he is abandoning the proposal.

Assemblyman Mervyn Dymally, D-Compton, said he now believes voters should determine board members' pay and that he plans to withdraw his legislation.

The move, which became public earlier this week and drew widespread criticism, would have allowed boards overseeing 500,000 students or more to become full-time employees and vote themselves hefty pay hikes.

LAUSD board members - currently part time with salaries of $24,000 a year - would have seen raises of 600 percent, to $171,000 a year.