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City salaries
to rise despite
objections

A resolution to reject most
raises fails in the Council's
Budget Committee

By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Star-Bulletin

The Honolulu City Council cannot agree not to give themselves a pay raise, so salaries for the Council, the mayor and other top city employees will go up beginning next month.

The raises will kick in even though Mayor Jeremy Harris opposed all of them and Council Chairman Jon Yoshimura had introduced a resolution supporting raises only for the police and fire chiefs, their deputies and the Royal Hawaiian Band master.

The city Salary Commission in April recommended pay increases for the mayor, Council members, department heads and their deputies and the city's attorneys. The increases will cost taxpayers $384,000 annually. City Charter rules say those recommendations become law unless the Council rejects or modifies them within 60 calendar days.

Yoshimura's resolution to reject most of the raises failed to move out of the Council's Budget Committee this week, which means it will not get before the full Council before the 60-day deadline.

"We didn't have consensus in our committee," said Budget Chairwoman Rene Mansho. "Without having agreement among the three members present, the measure was deferred."

Yoshimura said he was "disappointed" with the outcome while acknowledging that he did not have the votes to reject the raises. "I don't think now's the right time to be giving out these raises even though they are deserved," he said. "I think we're still in a tough economic time, and we need to show leadership from the top."

HOW MUCH MORE Pay raises for city officials: Mayor: $8,000 raise to $110,000 a year Managing director: $8,100 raise to $105,000 Deputy managing director: $7,945 raise to $100,000 City Council members: $3,230 raise to $42,500 City Council chairman: $1,290 raise to $47,500 Fire and police chiefs: $12,626 raise to $98,000 Fire and police deputy chiefs: $11,898 raise to $93,000 Other directors: $9,626 raise to $95,000 (except fire, police and Royal Hawaiian Band) Other deputy directors: $8,898 raise to $90,000 (except fire, police and Royal Hawaiian Band) Royal Hawaiian Band director: $6,024 raise to $70,000

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City & County of Honolulu