Council plans to reject
city official pay raisesA resolution would block the
suggestions of a city commission
from taking effect
Members of the City Council are poised to reject 21 percent pay raises for themselves.
Proposed pay increases
The Salary Commission's recommendations would raise the following salaries:>> Mayor: $117,810
>> Managing director: $112,455
>> Deputy managing director: $107,100
>> City Council chairman: $58,905
>> Council members: $52,700
>> City prosecutor and corporation counsel: $104,797
>> First deputy prosecutor and corporation counsel: $99,282
The Council likely will also block today 5 percent salary increases for the mayor, his top two managers, the prosecutor, corporation counsel and their first deputies.
"I think we need to bite the bullet," Councilman Rod Tam said.
The Council's Budget Committee had four salary resolutions to consider yesterday and approved one that would reject all recommendations made by the city Salary Commission in April. None of the four Budget Committee members present objected to the resolution.
Councilman Gary Okino, who is not a member of the Budget Committee, asked the committee to consider his measure which would have rejected the Council raises but kept salary hikes for everyone else.
Okino said the Council raises were unjustified, but raises for the administration positions were needed to keep pace with collective bargaining raises.
"Basically it's to maintain the hierarchy between the different levels," Okino said.
The administration has lobbied to raise the salary of the managing director, who runs the day-to-day operations of the city and who currently makes $107,100, because his salary is lower than the police and fire chiefs, both of whom got a 5 percent raise last year and now make $110,206.
Okino said the Salary Commission should consider raising the salaries of the department heads because some of their division heads will be paid more than their bosses under the new collective-bargaining agreements.
Tam said he was disappointed that the mayor wanted a salary hike for his managers while at the same time not budgeting for raises for employees covered by union contracts.
The Council has until June 29 to reject or modify the commission's proposed salaries, or they will take effect automatically. Seven of nine votes are needed to reject the raises.
