Title
Adoption of Resolution Increasing the Mayor and Councilmember Salaries in Accordance with Alameda City Charter Section 2-1.1 and 2-4 Amended by Voters in November 2022 to Increase Mayor's Base Salary to $28,311 Annually and Councilmembers' Base Salary to $18,896 Annually Retroactive to July 1, 2023; and Amending the Fiscal Years 2023-25 Operating Budget Authorizing a Reallocation of $97,200 Each Fiscal Year from Non-departmental Contingency to City Council Personnel Budget. (Human Resources 10025060)
Body
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Jennifer Ott, City Manager
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
In accordance with the City of Alameda Charter and because the stated goal of the ballot measure was to encourage people to run for office who may not otherwise be able to afford it, staff is proposing an increase to the City Council's compensation package after passage of the amendment to the City Charter to allow an increase to the Mayor and Councilmember salaries effective July 1, 2023.
BACKGROUND
In December of 2018, the Mayor appointed a subcommittee consisting of then Councilmembers Knox-White and Daysog, to review the City Charter and recommend potential items for City Council consideration and amendment. In April 2019, the subcommittee returned to City Council with various recommendations. One recommendation was a Charter amendment related to City Council compensation. In June 2020, City Council approved placing the City Council compensation amendment on the November 8, 2022 ballot and instructed staff to return with language.
In June 2022, staff returned with recommended language for an amendment to set City Council compensation at an amount not-to-exceed 30% of the salary for "All Occupations, United States Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward CA Area." The discussion of language for an amendment included the reasons for increasing compensation, including to widen the poo...
Click here for full text