Currently, councilors earn $3,000 a year — a figure that has stayed the same for more than 12 years, according to independent Councilor Dave Hartnett, who sponsored the resolution. Given the time he spends on the job, “I don’t believe it would be even minimum wage,” he said.
“We do it for the love of the city … but I think we need to be realistic,” he told the council on Monday. “In the last 12 to 16 months, I feel like I’ve spent more time with city council than I have with my family. That’s valuable time.”
The council shrunk from 14 to 12 members after a 2015 redistricting process, Hartnett noted, resulting in more work for fewer members. Hartnett, who represents Burlington’s New North End, estimated that he spends approximately 40 to 50 hours a month on council business and attending various subcommittees. A slightly higher salary may also increase the pool of those interested in running for a council seat, he added.
Support for the motion was widespread. “I’ve often thought about how much more I could do for my constituents with just that much more capacity,” said Progressive Councilor Selene Colburn after Hartnett made a motion to approve.
Councilor Tom Ayres pointed to the South Portland, Maine city council, which offers its members health benefits in addition to basic compensation. Such benefits, Ayres said, may not cost the city significantly and could also provide an incentive for more community members to serve.
For context, Hartnett pointed out, Plattsburgh, N.Y., city councilors make $6,000 a year; he would not be in favor of doubling the current salary, he said. He chose the $2,000 figure arbitrarily, he noted later, but doesn’t support raising his pay any more than that.
Compensation has never determined his decision to run for the position, Hartnett said, but neither is it irrelevant. He works managing a Mobil gas station in Burlington, and said he uses the city council monthly pay check to cover his family’s winter gas bill.
With Burlington’s downtown redevelopment and other controversial issues looming, “more and more has been dumped on our plates,” he told Seven Days Tuesday. Still, he merely wants a review of the issue; if the charter change committee suggested no change in pay, he wouldn’t complain.
“It’s certainly not one of the driving issues facing the city,” Hartnett said.
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That’s a shock huh. Imagine that elected officials with D’s next to their names giving themselves a raise. How kind of them to take even more from the people. I feel so bad for them that they are not making minimum wage doing a duty that was meant to be a volunteer job. The founding fathers never meant for people to get rich being civil servants. How about the people get to decide how much they get paid based on what they accomplish for the people. Liberals have become cancer to society.
It’s easy to get angry about the idea of elected officials wanting to get paid more for their service. Let’s flip that thinking on its head.
Who exactly is able to put the time into public service? It’s only people who are already financially secure who can afford the opportunity cost that public service exacts In other words, the time a councilor spends communicating with constituents –at all hours of the day– and working on resolutions, ordinances, and other city issues is all time that could be put to much more profitable use working just about any other job, including fast food.
In a time where so many voters claim to be against elitism and the status quo, one real way of getting lower-income people to serve in public office would be to make sure that they don’t go broke just by serving. Paying our councilors a living wage would go a long way toward changing the composition of our city council in the long run. If you truly care about shaking things up, making it feasible for low-income people to run and serve in elected office goes a helluva long way toward that goal.
But above all, I invite anyone who wants to mouth off about our so-and-so councilors voting themselves more money to put up or shut up: you run for office. You get elected. You serve us. Then come back here to tell us all how easy it was to do with the pittance you got paid.
This salary increase is far overdue. I plan to be there Tuesday night with support and recommendations.
First a little math. If a Burlington City Councilor spends less then 20-30 hours a week working then he or she is not doing the job. That includes meetings, preparation and constituent services. Some spend far more then this, but lets be conservative and take the 25 hours a week figure. Fifty weeks a year. Then lets use the $15 minimum wage number that is so often touted. By my calculations that’s $18,750 a year. That is what the Councilors should be paid at a minimum. Why should elected officials be receiving any less then anyone else? Do you work for free? You will note that I used a minimum wage number on purpose. If you want a diverse number of qualified people to run, the minimum should really be something more approaching a middle class number like $30 an hour. Right now using my same numbers Councilors make $2.40 an hour. And with the increase that will go up to $4.00 an hour. They shouldn’t even be bothering with this increase because it is meaningless.
Let me put this another way. The Mayor and CAO make approximately $222,000 combined based on FY 2016 numbers. Allowing for 35% in benefits etc that number is approximately $300,000. If you just used that number to determine Councilor salaries (as a way of balancing power) take $300,000/12 = $25,000 per Councilor.
Always a little curious about those who indicate that serving as an elected official is all about “public service.” Since when does public service, equal free service? Nate Orshan also hits the nail on the head. Do you expect appointed and hired officials of the City from the department heads on down to work for for $2.40 or $4.00 an hour? Why in the world would you expect elected officials to?
To the guy lacking the courage to put a real name on his/her comment, in fact the people do decide what Councilors get paid. The proposal for an increase requires a vote. The council does not have the authority to increase their own pay.
Nate Orshan’s analysis is spot on.