Mansura Council pay raise put on hold

 

   Mansura residents will have an opportunity to comment on a proposed raise for Town Council members after all.

  The aldermen were notified the raise approved by resolution at a special meeting on June 29 was invalid because increasing council members’ stipend requires an ordinance. The council introduced the ordinance to increase per-meeting pay by $100 -- to $300 a month. They will be paid $100 for any special meeting they must attend.

   A public hearing on the proposed pay raise ordinance will be held at 5:30 p.m. Aug. 17 and be presented for adoption at the regular meeting immediately following the public hearing.

   There was no change in the mayor’s salary of $36,000 a year. 

   Council members had been paid $200 a month to tend to town business and attend the regular meeting. They were also paid $100 to attend special meetings.

   At the June 29 meeting, the council voted 4-1 vote to approve the pay hike for regular meetings and keep the special meeting pay the same. Councilman Gaon Escude was the lone vote against the increase.

   “They approved the pay raise the wrong way,” Escude said prior to this past Monday’s regular meeting. “You can’t approve a raise for the council members by resolution. It has to be by ordinance.”

    Escude said he is still against the council pay raise.

    At the June 29 special meeting, the council also approved paying for health insurance for the town’s 12 full-time employees.

   Mansura received two proposals. It accepted Colonial Insurance’s proposal to provide health insurance for $68,000 a year. The council budgeted $80,000 for the cost of health insurance but noted that it can be amended later if it is seen that there will be no additional health insurance costs during the year.