Councilmen, mayor at odds on proposed raises

Three ordinances introduced Tuesday would raise the pay of city council members, the mayor pro-tempore and the mayor if passed next month.
The ordinance proposes raising the four single-member councilmen’s monthly pay from $500 to $800, and the at-large elected mayor pro-tempore to $850. The council receives $150 in expense funds authorized by a separate ordinance currently in effect.
The mayor’s salary would increase from $48,000 to $60,000.
Councilman Eugene Foulcard introduced the ordinance for single-member districts but at $650 per month.
Mayor Raymond Harris said, “I really don’t like this gesture. A little over a year ago we cut our employees across the board, 5 percent. I took a 5 percent cut with them…we’ve never restored the cuts we made, and neither are we in a position to restore it. I think this sends the wrong message. Before anyone gets a raise up here, we need to restore their 5 percent.”
Harris added that even then, returning employees to their former pay level isn’t a raise, it’s a restoration of their salaries.
Foulcard said the increase “is not for me, it’s not for me, it’s not for anyone up here. There’s no guarantee I’ll run…any of us sitting up here. It will take effect for (the next council and mayor term).”
The city charter mandates that a council can only raise their own pay and the mayor’s for the next term, and not within one year of the end of the current term.
Current councilmembers are not prohibited to run for their seats again in the next election.
“I can’t see how we could in good conscience go for that,” Harris repeated. “Before we cut them, I laid off a dozen people because we couldn’t afford them anymore.”
Councilman Joe Garrison repeated that the raise would not apply to this council term. “Let democracy rule and vote us out if you think it’s for our own personal gain. It’s not. We’re trying to do all we can to see that our employees get what they deserve.”
“How can you give raises in a down economy?” Harris asked. “If the economy dips are you going to make pay cuts up here too?…You’re giving a raise to a position that’s part time and neglecting the people that are full-time.”
All three ordinances were introduced for possible action at the April meeting.