City to Gillette: Pay raise required

Lynchburg’s individual city councilors cannot waive their tax-funded paychecks, even when they’re inclined to pass on the money, according to a determination from staff.

City Council voted last December to give itself a raise, approving an extra $2,000 a year for each of its seven members.

The bigger pay rates kicked in for the first time last week, when officials got their first full check of the new fiscal year. Council members are paid on the same, biweekly basis as city employees.

At the outset of the salary debate, Ward I Councilman Mike Gillette publicly stated he would not personally accept any extra wages, although he supported the bid for a wage increase.

Prior to announcing his position at a December meeting, Gillette asked if he could legally reject a portion of his paycheck. City Attorney Walter Erwin replied in the affirmative at the time, but has since reversed his conclusion.

In a recent interview, Erwin noted the approved raises were written into the city code, which both mandates that council members be paid and further cements the size of their various salaries.

“Nothing in there says if they don’t want it, we don’t have to send it to them,” Erwin said of the money. “We’ve got no choice but to give Councilman Gillette the full amount prescribed by the code.”

Under the revised salary terms, which were passed by council on a 5-2 vote, the city’s five councilmen and one vice mayor earn $10,000 a year. The mayor, meanwhile, gets $12,000.

Following the city attorney’s ruling, Gillette said he would instead donate his additional money to a charity that furthers city interests. He had not yet settled on a specific organization.

“I still have to decide who I’m going to pick,” he said. “But it will be something that advances the city’s goals.”

Gillette has pledged to continue donating his extra pay for the next two years. At that point, the new council recently installed after the spring elections will have its first opportunity to evaluate the group’s salaries.

In Virginia, a city council can also revise its pay in the months leading up to a local election. The next council election in Lynchburg takes place in spring 2010.

Although he eschewed his own raise, Gillette did support the increases when they came before council.

He expressed concern a low stipend would prevent poorer residents from making a run for council, creating a chilling effect on the local democratic process. He also felt the compensation, even at its bumped-up rate, remained reasonable given the time commitment that comes with holding elected office.

“Let me make it very, very clear,” he said in a recent interview. “I don’t think there’s anything wrong with the other council members taking this money. … That’s pay well-earned.”

Vice Mayor Bert Dodson and At-large Councilman Scott Garrett were the only officials who opposed the bigger salaries.

When asked about his plans for the extra money, Dodson, who’s been in office the past 10 years, said he’s always had his paycheck sent to a separate checking account he maintains for that purpose.
The “vast majority” of the money deposited there goes to local charities, he said.

“The money gets re-circulated to the community that way,” he said. “If I get more money for the job, it’s more money for the community.”

Garrett, who was elected to council two years ago, said he does not maintain separate accounts, but does give to several of the city’s nonprofits.

“I think it’s fair to say the salary I get from City Council is donated right back to the community,” he said. “… I certainly don’t spend it on myself.”