LWV League of Women Voters of California
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Orange County, CA November 5, 2002 Election
Measure S
Mayor/Council Compensation
City of Placentia

Charter Amendment

3,342 / 35.3% Yes votes ...... 6,128 / 64.7% No votes

See Also: Index of all Measures

Results as of Nov 12 4:00pm, 100.0% of Precincts Reporting (36/36)
Information shown below: Impartial Analysis | Arguments |

Shall Section 602 of the Charter of the City of Placentia be amended to provide for three (3) annual increases of $100.00 per month in the compensation to be paid to the Mayor and the Members of the City Council?

Impartial Analysis from City Attorney
The current provisions of the City Charter provide that the Mayor and each member of the City Council shall receive $150 per month as compensation for services to the City. The amount of compensation to be paid the Mayor and members of the City Council was last changed in 1980. This measure would provide that the monthly compensation to be paid to the Mayor and the members of the City Council would be changed over a three year period by providing a $100 per month increase on January 1, 2003, January 1, 2004, and January 1, 2005 so that effective on January 1, 2005, the compensation to be paid the Mayor and each member of the City Council would be $450 per month.

 
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Arguments For Measure S
The City Council has not received a cost-of-living increase for over 20 years.

The last time the Council received a pay increase was
1980. Inflation has gone up by at least 70% since then. The workload for our Council has increased over the years but the pay has not matched that extra work.

Council members put in long hours every week in service to our City and our residents, serving the public at all hours of the day. Besides Council meetings, subcommittee sessions, and regional board and commission meetings, our Council members attend many other evening and weekend meetings and public events. They also spend many hours consulting with citizens and community groups on numerous neighborhood and City concerns.

The Council regularly makes important policy and budget decisions in such areas as police services, street and sewer repair, traffic, neighborhood preservation, parks and recreation, and planning and land use. These decisions require thorough research, wide public input, careful deliberation, and lots of time.

Voting for a pay increase will allow a greater diversity of people to afford to hold public office. Without a pay increase, people who need to support their families may not be able to afford to serve on the Council due to the commitment of long hours necessary to do the job properly. Without a pay increase people with child care or disability assistance needs will be hard-pressed to take on the extensive Council duties.

We should take pride in our elected representatives and provide them with a fair level of compensation for the contributions they make to our City and our residents. Vote Yes on Measure S.

(No arguments against Measure S were submitted)


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Created: December 6, 2002 03:14 PST
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