City Council rejects proposal to raise their pay

SAN DIEGO (CNS) - The San Diego City Council on Monday unanimously rejected a proposal to raise their pay and that of the city's mayor to more than double their current salaries.

The city's Salary Setting Commission proposed that council members be paid $175,000 for the next two fiscal years starting July 1, and that the mayor receive an annual salary of $235,000.

"It's a joke to even think that we would vote for this," said Councilman David Alvarez. "I don't think anybody on this council ran for council thinking that they were going to make a lot of money. Nobody's here to get rich."

The mayor is currently paid $100,464 and council members $75,386. They haven't had a salary boost in nine years, according to commission Chairman Robert Ottilie.

"This is a serious problem that's been kicked down the road for too long," Ottilie said.

In the 2010 calendar year, 3,528 city workers took home more money than council members, including 33 lifeguards, Ottilie said.

Ottilie said he recognized the lack of public support for members raising their own salaries, and suggested instead that they offer voters a City Charter amendment that changes the method for fixing pay rates. Otherwise, council members could keep the power to set salaries and have changes take effect for each district when they leave office.

Councilman Carl DeMaio said a charter amendment, which could cost about $500,000, was premature.

Ottilie said the commissioners studied salaries in comparable western cities and took into consideration such factors as San Diego's high cost of living, inflation and the need to remain competitive to attract talented individuals.

"This really isn't about whether people that run for the office want the $75,000 or not," Ottilie said. "What this is about is determining why people can't afford to run for the office; who would be excellent people to put in that candidate pool for the voters to chose from."