City Council is looking at ways to have someone else give its members a raise.
Monday, council heard the first reading of legislation that would increase the salary for members. Under the legislation salaries would increase from $7,920 to $8,370 in 2022 and $8,520 in 2023. The council president makes 25% more than the other council members.
Council member Aaron Carpenter asked if he could stall the process, saying he feels awkward voting for his own raise.
Law Director Tim Aslaner explained that elected officials do not vote on their own salaries, but rather on the salary for the position.
Carpenter said it is still difficult.
“I don’t think that it is my duty to raise my own salary,” Carpenter said.
He asked if there was a way council could abdicate that responsibility to someone else, suggesting the city law director. Because the law director is elected, that person does not work for city council or the city manager.
Aslaner said the idea is “pretty unorthodox.”
“I would have to think it through,” he said.
He added, “I guess it is possible, but it would be very, very unusual.”
Aslaner explained that under the city charter, it actually is council’s responsibility to set council pay and to review it every two years. He said that if a member is uncomfortable voting for a raise, they can vote to not increase the salary or give a “minimal” raise.
Council member J.R. Rausch said any salary legislation would still come to council for ultimate approval.
Council President Mark Reams said the current council and the law director get along, but a time could come when they do not. He said the law director could set council salary very low.
Reams said the law director setting the council salary could create “a budget problem.”
Aslaner said that in addition to having the charter responsibility to set the salary, council is also charged with creating and working within the annual budget.
“Council is in charge of the budget,” Aslaner said. “You control the purse straps. Council has to be in charge of the money.”
It was said that state legislators set the salary for county and township office holders, based on the population. Reams said it might be a good idea to talk to state legislators about setting the salaries for city and village officials as well.
Finance Director Brad Lutz recommended against having anyone else set council salary.
“City council should set their salaries. Legislative bodies set their own salaries. It starts from the top down,” Lutz said noting that national and state legislators set the salary for their positions.
City Manager Terry Emery said any council member uncomfortable with the raise or even a salary can donate all or some of the money to a local charity. He said that would allow council members to stay on pace to receive full Ohio Public Employee Retirement System (OPERS) credit.
“That’s a way you can put that money right back into the community,” Emery suggested.
The OPERS service credit has been a driver in the salary conversation.
As part of the meeting, Rausch said he received an OPERS statement Monday. Rausch said he has been on council for 10 years, but has only 7.85 years of credit.
OPERS sets an annual minimum salary for a public employee to earn full service credit under the state’s retirement plan. If the employee does not meet that minimum threshold, the service time credit is pro-rated, based on the salary percentage of the state minimum.
In 2019, council voted to raise the salary of its members from $7,200 to $7,920 to match the minimum amount set by Ohio Public Employee Retirement System (OPERS) for an employee to earn full service credit under the state’s retirement plan.
Since then, OPERS has increased the minimum amount to $8,218.32 for this year and $8362.08 in 2022 and $8,508.36 in 2023.
Human Resources Director Brian Dostanko recently offered a report with several sets of comparables, including the 14 communities used in the 2021 wage and workforce study, the 2019 Ohio Municipal League Study and the 2020 Mid-Ohio Regional Planning Commission annual study.
“Comparable data shows that city council is currently underpaid,” Dostanko wrote in a memo to council members. “They will no doubt continue to fall further behind without some form of future increases.”
The matter will come for a second reading and public comment at the May 24 council meeting.