Benton supervisors table salary decision

VINTON – Just how Benton County employees are to get pay raises was debated by the Benton County Board of Supervisors during its Feb. 27 meeting.

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Elected officials’ pay increases are based on what is recommended by the county’s compensation board. Salaries for deputies to these officials are based on the salaries of the elected officials.

Supervisors cannot offer pay raises exceeding what was recommended by the compensation board, and if the salaries are cut, they have to be cut by the same percentage across the board.

Earlier this year, the compensation board had recommended an increase of 3%.

Before next year’s budget is approved, the supervisors also set the salaries for non-elected, non-union and non-commissioned and non-contracted employees.

Supervisor Chairman Richard Primmer led the discussion by observing that if you want to keep good people, you have to pay them.

There has always been an issue of people at the top getting a larger raise than people who are on the lower scale, Primmer said. He wondered if the board can do something across the board so everyone gets treated the same.

Primmer wants to give everyone a flat dollar amount instead of a percentage increase.

Primmer asked the supervisors for their thoughts.

The board pondered going with the recommended percentage increase for elected officials and deputies and then trying a flat dollar amount for the rest.

Primmer asked about acting on the compensation board’s recommendation. “I know what you want to do. But I don’t think we can do that for the employees,” observed Supervisor Tracy Seeman.

Seeman recommended tabling a decision until the next meeting so supervisors can find out if they can do that. He made a motion to that effect.

Primmer again said he was trying to keep everyone as equal as can be and still stay within the law.

Supervisors voted to take up the issue again March 5. “It will give me a week to do some pencil pushing,” Seeman said.

In other business, Robert Spangler met with the board and gave the annual report on the Benton County Historical Preservation Commission and bids were accepted for Cedar Valley Ranch farm ground. The winning bid was $300 an acre.