The mayor’s proposed $25K pay raise is “way too high,” members of the aldermanic Black and Hispanic Caucus agreed Monday night.
Even DeStefano loyalists said they plan to argue down the pay hike Mayor John DeStefano Jr. requested for his next two-year term. After sailing into an eighth term in office in last Tuesday’s election, the city’s top exec asked aldermen to raise his salary from $115,000 to $140,000, an increase of 22 percent.
“That’s just pure greed!” harrumphed Hill Alderwoman Jackie James (pictured) when the topic came up at a Monday meeting of the board’s minority caucus in City Hall.
“He knows just what he’s doing,” said Hill Alderwoman Andrea Jackson-Brooks. DeStefano is asking for a higher figure, knowing it would be bargained down, she reasoned.
As private CEOs do, the mayor should write a letter to the board justifying why he deserves such a raise, suggested Bishop Woods Alderman Gerald Antunes.
The mayor argues he’s due for a raise because he hasn’t had one in four years. The last time DeStefano got a raise was in 2003, when his pay was upped by $5,000 to total $115,000.
By city charter, mayoral and city clerk pay raises must be approved by the Board of Aldermen. An ordinance amendment must be passed by a simple majority before Jan. 1.
Judging by the aldermanic barometer at this point, the mayor wouldn’t have the 16 votes he needs to get the full 22 percent pay raise approved.
“Up In Arms”
Aldermen said they’ve been flooded with phone calls, and approached constantly in the supermarket, by people outraged over the mayor’s request.
“The public is up in arms,” said caucus president and Hill Alderman Jorge Perez (pictured). Perez and others agreed some pay raise is appropriate, but not the amount the mayor asked for.
Raises for the mayor and city clerk were slipped last-minute onto last Thursday’s full board agenda. Human Resources Director Tina Burgett, who submitted the request, said she had to wait until the Nov. 6 election to submit the request, then file it for Thursday’s meeting so that it could be approved by aldermen before Jan. 1. The raises would apply to the two-year term starting Jan. 1, 2008.
City Clerk Ron Smith’s salary would be upped from $42,167 to $55,000.
Burgett argued the raises should account for the past four years in which the two salaries held steady.
“The pay raises are comparable to Local 3144 salary increases of the past 4 years through the end of contract in 2009,” explained Burgett in a letter to the board.
Perez and others rejected that line of reasoning Monday. Pay raises are not done retroactively, said Perez. “That’s not how it works.”
DeStefano’s raise should be commensurate with employees’ raises, but only for the next two years, not all six, argued Jackson-Brooks.
The caucus, or at least the six members present, agreed to “strongly suggest” that the pay raise be “much lower.”
“Four or 5 percent,” suggested Antunes.
Jackie James added a suggestion: How about a mayoral report card? “Who gives him a performance evaluation?”
“He says the voters do that every two years,” said Perez. But with so few people voting, Perez noted, there didn’t seem to be much of an “evaluation” done.
Over on the other side of the aldermanic divide, even DeStefano loyalists appear poised to bargain down the mayor’s request to something more comparable with other cities. Hartford’s mayor gets $125,000 and Bridgeport’s mayor earns $121,180, as of January.
East Rock Alderman Roland Lemar balked at the $140,000 figure.
“He gets a free car, free parking and free gas,” noted Lemar, who was down the hall from the caucus meeting Monday. Lemar, who described himself as a DeStefano loyalist, said he thought a $125,000 salary would be more suitable, given what other cities offer. The financial impact of DeStefano’s pay raise request, in pension benefits alone, would top a half-million dollars, calculated the alderman.
Lemar said aldermen’s approval shouldn’t rest on a mayoral report card, but on finding an appropriate value for the position. “The position of mayor of New Haven has a value,” said Lemar. “It’s not about Mayor John DeStefano and whether he has done a good job or a bad job.”
Reached for comment Monday, Aldermanic President Carl Goldfield said he had not determined exactly how much of a pay raise he thought was due.
“The mayor hasn’t had a raise in four years, and he should get one,” said Goldfield. “The issue is, what’s an appropriate level of pay.”
""The public is up in arms," said caucus president and Hill Alderman Jorge Perez"
Really? But DeStefano won in a "landslide." So, is the public surprised by this? Were they not expecting DeStefano to milk taxpayers? Have they not been paying attention the last 14 years?
Why why why does this keep happening all over the nation? Why doesn't anyone vote then get all upset when they suffer the obvious repercussions?
I had a sad conversation with a roommate last night. He proved to be an obscenely uninformed voter who admitted not knowing anything other than DeStefano was a Democrat when he went to vote then admitted the only reason he went to vote at all was because I kept reminding everyone in the house to do so. This is the average voter. Uninformed, apathetic and yes people, those sappy idiotic campaign TV commercials actually do work! This same individual thought he couldn't NOT vote for a D because he was registered as a D. (banging keyboard with head) Sadly, I think he is actually an "above average" voter.
An article in the Yale Daily News mentions Jacqueline James' concern over how to "justify this to the taxpayers." Where was her concern for justification for every other expense this city fabricates? Justify the BearCat to me. Justify those damn bus stops not just to me but to every taxpayer local state and federal.
For all those partisan fanboys who sent around IQ charts of states after the 2004 election I'd expect New Haven voters to be a little brighter. At the very least to be aware of their surroundings. Or IQ apparently doesn't mean anything.