The county supervisors awarded all county elected officials, including themselves, a 3 percent salary increase effective July 1. It is the first time in three years the supervisors have given themselves a raise.
The vote to accept the compensation board’s recommendation of a 3 percent increase was split. On a voice vote, supervisors Dawn Rudolph and Mick Burkett voted in favor. John Muir and Tom Contner voted against accepting it. When auditor Jane Heun verified the vote individually, Pete Bardole paused, waivered, and then voted yes, serving as the tie breaker.
During discussion Bardole said it’s hard to give a raise more than the union employees, but he pointed out that they’re able to earn overtime, whereas the elected officials are salaried and are not eligible for overtime pay.
Union contracts with the secondary roads employees and sheriff’s office employees call for a 2.5 percent increase July 1.
Contner said he would vote for 2 or 2.5 percent, but not 3.
Burkett referred to former supervisor Guy Richardson, who always suggested the supervisors deserved a raise because of their efforts. “We work just as hard as anybody else does, and it seems this past year has been even busier, and we haven’t taken a raise in three years,” Burkett said.
“It’s part of trying to be progressive and trying to move forward. It takes more time and more meetings,” Rudolph said.
Other years the supervisors have acted on the compensation board’s recommendation in time to meet state requirements for considering their own increase separately from other elected officials’. Other elected officials received 2.5 percent increases for FY17 and FY16, and a 3 percent increase for FY15. Each of those years the supervisors gave themselves no increase. In FY14 other elected officials received a 3 percent increase and the supervisors gave themselves a 2 percent increase.
This year the supervisors did not meet the deadline for separating out their increase. Whatever raise they gave the other elected officials was theirs, also.
Muir said he has thought it was fair to treat everyone the same. “There’s nothing wrong with that, but it doesn’t work,” he said. Until the current union contract expires, “I’m going to treat everyone on the same plane,” he continued. “I’m not going to commit to that process again.”
After Rudolph pointed out that union employees have longevity raises in their pay scale, Muir said, “That’s what made me realize that when we think we’re treating everyone equal, but we’re not.”
The 3 percent increase changes salaries as follows: treasurer, from $55,784 to $57,457; auditor, from $56,292 to $57,981; recorder, from $55,258 to $56,915; sheriff, from $72,731 to $74,913; attorney, from $89,961 to $92,660; and supervisors, from $26,993 to $27,803.
