Supervisors agree not to take action to establish a compensation board
The county supervisors will be solely responsible for any salary increases for themselves and other county elected officials in the next fiscal year. They will take over the role of compensation board, despite two elected officials – treasurer Katlynn Mechaelsen and recorder Deb McDonald – lobbying them at the Dec. 2 meeting to continue receiving recommendations for wage increases from an appointed board as in previous years.
A change in Iowa Code approved during the 2024 legislative session makes it optional, not mandatory, for boards of supervisors to seek input from an appointed compensation board. Without action of the supervisors, there is no compensation board.
Discussion at the Dec. 9 supervisors meeting was short. Board chair John Muir had said during a lengthy discussion last week that he favored not using a compensation board. He said the supervisors have control over the budget, and they lose some of that control with a comp board.
According to Muir, the work of past compensation boards to get salaries for elected officials “at a good place” and “fair and competitive” provides an opportunity to move forward on a year-by-year basis. “I think this board is capable of being fair and thorough in deciding what raises are appropriate,” he said.
Supervisor Dan Benitz, who is now midway through his first term on the board, agreed, saying, “I think I’d like us to try that responsibility ourselves.”
“We’re in a good position, for a year, to try this on our own… A few years ago, I would have said ‘maybe not’,” supervisor Dawn Rudolph said.
Supervisor Mick Burkett, in his last month on the board, said compensation boards have been good and adjustments have been made during his 12 years on the board. “Your responsibility as a board is to take care of our employees. We’ve got good employees. We’ve got good elected officials, but this board still has the last say. I think you as a board should at least try it for a year.”
Supervisor Pete Bardole agreed. “My thinking initially was ‘leave it the way it was’, but it all comes down to we make that final decision anyway…. We’re going to look at the same stuff the compensation board looks at.”
County attorney Thomas Laehn had prepared Resolution 2024-054 to establish a compensation board. He and Muir coached the supervisors that because the resolution was on the agenda, if a supervisor wanted a comp board, he or she could make a motion to approve the resolution. It would then need a second. If no one made that motion, the matter would die. That’s what happened. Without taking a vote, the supervisors put themselves in charge of all elected officials’ salary increases. By law, deputy auditor, deputy treasurer, deputy recorder and chief deputy sheriff received 85 percent of the salary he or she serves.
Joe Gannon, who was elected in November to fill Burkett’s seat, said that because he is the brother of treasurer Katlynn Mechaelsen, he would abstain from voting on salaries “unless my vote is needed.”
Muir said salary increases will not be affected by an elected official’s political party. (All supervisors are Republicans. Recorder Deb McDonald is the only elected Democrat county official.)
In other business, Jefferson city administrator Scott Peterson during his monthly update told the supervisors that the city council has completed work on a 5-year capital improvement plan and a statement of goals and priorities for 2025. The council’s top priority is determining housing needs and ways to address them. The second priority is finding ways to use technology to interact with residents, increase e-commerce, and increase citizen engagement.
“Maybe it’s an opportunity for the county that if there’s anything on the technology side where we have any opportunities to work together, we’d sure look to explore that. Whether that’s anything with citizen engagement or along those lines, we’re open to that,” Peterson told the supervisors.
