From The Trussville Tribune staff reports
TRUSSVILLE — During the Trussville City Council workshop on Thursday evening, Dec. 6, Councilman Alan Taylor asked the council to consider a plan to increase salaries for both mayor and city council. The proposal has been placed on the agenda for tonight’s (Tuesday) council meeting.
The vote could take place tonight or could be tabled for a later vote depending on council action. The pay increase would take effect in next term.
Any of the proposed salary adjustments would become effective for the next administration that will take office on Nov. 2020. State law requires that all salary changes be approved up to six months prior to municipal elections. The next municipal election in Trussville will be Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2020.
“We had a discussion in our last financial meeting about where Trussville compares to surrounding cities,” Taylor said. “We asked Melody Salter to do some comparisons with other cities. Some have part-time mayors, city managers and a chief of staff. We really wanted to look at some of the salaries that are associated with our administration and see how we compare.”
The proposal calls for a 43 percent increase in the next mayor’s salary and a 33 percent increase in the next city council’s salary over the current pay rate for the offices.
Currently, the mayor earns $6,300 per month for an annual salary of $75,600. The last city council set the current salary in 2016. The current salary is an increase from the previous mayor’s salary of $60,000, which was set by the council in 1998.
The proposal to be voted on Tuesday would increase the next mayor’s salary to $9,000 per month or $108,000 per year.
Also in 1998, the city council set the council salary at $500 per month and $6,000 annually, with the council president earning $1,000 per month for an annual salary of $12,000. In 2016, the previous council adjusted that amount to $750 per month for an annual salary of $9,000 for all city council positions.
Tonight’s proposal would raise the council and council president to $1,000 per month for an annual salary of $12,000.
The current council created a new Assistant to the Mayor position shortly after taking office. That is a full-time position that pays just over $53,000 per year. City Clerk Lynn Porter noted that that employee also helps with numerous other duties, such as social media and assisting the clerk’s office.
Below are some comparisons to other cities in Jefferson County:
Vestavia:
Part-time mayor – $15,000 per year
City Manager – $205,000 per year
Council – $7,200 per year
Mountain Brook:
City Manager – $183,835 per year
Mayor – $0
Council – $0
*Homewood:
Chief of Staff – $72,322 per year
Mayor – $32,000 per year
Council President – $6,000 per year
Council – $4,800 per year
*Homewood does not have a city manager, but the mayor has a chief of staff that assists him in several areas.