[RP TownTalk] Mayor and Council Salaries

[Jared]

Thanks to Marc for putting it so well.

I also disagree with the premise that more money equals better
representation.  Maybe more money would just attract someone who...
wants more money.  I am embarrassed to read that so much of our
representatives' time is dedicated to deciding how much to pay
themselves.  Sounds like a lot of research went into finding out how
much everyone else makes, too.

I agree that time is the major factor in attracting a broader pool of
candidates.  The unnecessary length of sessions, in particular, stands
out to me as insensitive to citizens who might want to participate in
the process.

I am not against a raise either, but three things make me skeptical:

1.  So much of the discussion seems to be about parity rather than good
government, although the rhetoric is the opposite.  

2.  If this really is about good government, how come the process
leading up to the introduction of the legislation was not more
transparent?  Why was the first we heard about this not from our
councilmembers but from a town staff member?  Were any citizens
consulted while the legislation was being drawn up?

3.  What is the ridiculousness about pay for play?  Maybe the issue is
getting muddled by this, but are we really boiling it down to getting a
bigger lollipop?  Who does the most work?... come on.

I will be at Monday's Town Hall meeting (even though Green Bay is
playing).

Jared Liu
4515 Sheridan Street


-----------------------------
Message: 5
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2006 23:06:53 -0400
From: "Marc Molino" <mmolino54 at hotmail.com>
Subject: Re: [RP TownTalk] Mayor and Council Salaries
To: towntalk at riverdale-park.org
Message-ID: <BAY113-F21DE3F171433187388366FA51B0 at phx.gbl>
Content-Type: text/plain; format=flowed

Rob,
Am I correct in the assertion that at least half of the current council
members also have full-time jobs in addition to their duties on the
council?

I know for me personally, affording time to dedicate to such a job
would have nothing to do with money and everything to do with simply
finding the time. It's not as if some extra money replaces the time one
might need to be spending on other paid work, instead of council
duties. I have no issues with considering a raise, though I think this
would be little incentive to create a better council and tieing
compensation to participation/performance doesn't seem
realistic/feasible. Which is why the salary is more like a stipend or
honorarium--it's a token acknowledgement for the service rendered and
in no way seems to reflect the amount of blood, sweat, and tears being
offered.

Out of 6 council members and one mayor--you, Gerry, and Vern are the
only representatives I consistently see participating on this list and
writing articles in the Town Crier. That doesn't mean the other council
members aren't doing anything, it just means that whatever they're
doing is not as visible (to me personally). Given that it's highly
unlikely that any raise would be setup based on participation or
performance, what is the point of the raise?

Again, I'm not against the raise ($300 to $400/month seems reasonable),
but if you're talking about moving the town forward, it sounds like
you're asking for greater dedication and participation amongst the
citizens and the current council members. That's just not something you
can buy, nor something you can adequately compensate. It is something
you can foster and I think the increased communication and outreach to
the public that this council and administration have been doing is
building a foundation for growth. 

I'm not sure I've ever used so many words and yet said so little
(sigh).
Sleep beckons,
Marc


From: Rob Oppenheim <rob.oppenheim at comcast.net>
Reply-To: rob.oppenheim at comcast.net
To: TownTalk <towntalk at riverdale-park.org>
Subject: Re: [RP TownTalk] Mayor and Council Salaries
Date: Wed, 27 Sep 2006 21:53:09 -0400

People do not serve on the council for the money. Yet money matters.
Council members have to be able to afford to dedicate time to the job.
As an example, along with many evenings and weekends, I set aside
Mondays (all day each week) to work on town issues. I like to be
positive about our town. If I were to be fully honest, I think the town
is worse off now than 12 years ago, and we are facing serious,
challenges ahead. The mayor cannot do this alone. A good, creative,
hard working council is critical to bringing us back and to move us
forward. My proposal is not based on inflation, rather on what it will
take to move the town forward. I first suggested a cap of $600/month
with pay based on participation (meaning some would get significantly
less). I got shot full of holes on that, so I backed off to $450/month.
Frankly, I doubt if even that will pass.
-Rob
P.S. Regarding Inflation and what other towns pay ... So, this would be
quite a raise, not simply a Cost of Living adjustment.  True. But not
as much as it might look at first glance. Arguably the RP council was
underpaid in 1995 when it was last changed. Back in 1991, Hyattsville
started paying $250/mo. In 2004, College Park started paying $367/mo.
Adjust their rates for inflation and project to 2007 and you get about
$440/month**. Also consider that these are much larger towns and have a
lot more staff to support the Mayor and Council. (And they have a
larger tax base to afford it too). **Any pay change will become
effective in 2007, so figure 12 years of inflation for RP and 16 years
for Hy. I used the Employment Cost Index (ECI) for state and local
government workers,
Ref: http://www.economagic.com/em-cgi/data.exe/blsec/ecu11113i
ECI for Hy at 16 years is about 76% = $440,
ECI for RP at 12 years is about 50% = $300
ECI for CP at 3.5 years is about 14% = $420.
[end]


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