A controversial plan to boost council members’ stipends will be revisited again next week in two back-to-back public hearings at 5:30 and 6 p.m. Aug. 17, city officials said.
“The city attorney had to rewrite the ordinance, so instead of their being $25, it has to read those new dollar amounts, so we have to have a first reading and a second reading,” said At-large Councilman Dwayne Ariola, who has voted against two previous attempts to raise compensation along with District 2 Councilman Mitch Drummond in a phone interview. “It’s going to be a packed house next week, trust me.”
At the July 27 meeting, the Taylor City Council voted 3-2 to increase their own stipends from $25 to $1,000 per month and to $1,500 per month for the mayor’s position, effective for the new budget Oct. 1, despite a council– appointed compensation committee recommending a much lower raise to $250 per month for all elected officials, including the mayor, taking effect incrementally over several election cycles.
