Officials in Plattsburgh are considering pay raises for common councilors. But with staggered terms, councilors are uncertain how to do it.
At the latest Finance and Community Development Committee meeting, the mayor and Plattsburgh councilors discussed a proposal that would amend the 2024 city budget to give them a raise of $5,000, to $15,000 annually, effective January 1st.
The City Charter states that “Compensation for councilors shall be established by local law, except that changes may not be effective during the term of office during which the change is approved.” Councilors serve three-year terms, staggered among the six wards.
Councilor Jeff Moore cautioned that clarification is needed before moving forward.
“At the time that this was written all terms were two years," noted Moore. "The mayor and all the councilors were voted in at the same time. So what they were saying here was you could, anytime between zero and two, you could vote to change the salaries. They would all be at the same time. But it was intended that it would be at the next term in office, which would have been in two years for everyone. So I think this needs to be straightened out.”
Mayor Chris Rosenquest, a Democrat, offered possible options including updating the charter by local law to provide councilors a change in compensation regardless of their election cycle or approving a pay increase that is not applicable until 2026. The mayor recommended the first option.
“We make sure that that money’s allocated in the budget," said Rosenquest. "We put forth a local law to change councilor compensation and then go through the process of a public hearing, of course. It would then be approved, or assuming it would be approved, by members of the council. And at that point that’s when we would enact compensation change for all six councilors, all at the same time.”
Former Mayor Colin Read, a professor of economics and finance at SUNY Plattsburgh, is concerned about the additional $30,000 expense for the city.
“Anytime you’re spending somebody else’s money you have to worry about it," Read said. "As mayor I certainly would jump on any opportunity to save $30,000 in the budget, which is exactly the same sort of thing here. You combine that with a proposal to move to a city manager and now you’re looking at a quarter of a million dollars of total impact on the city, plus lifetime retirement benefits and health care benefits, etc. as well. So I think these are price tags that I certainly would not want pursued.”
Under a recommendation by Rosenquest, the city is exploring updating its charter, perhaps to a hired city manager format.
Plattsburgh Common Councilors last received a raise in 2016, before staggered terms were implemented.
