Changing Mayor and Councilor Stipends

In response to people asking me about this issue on the May ballot, I’m providing information and my thinking regarding the proposal to change the way the mayor and councilors are compensated for their service here in Ashland.

Background

Until last July, the City covered full medical, dental, and vision coverage for the mayor and councilors and their families. At the end of last year, it was determined that the authorization did not exist in our charter to continue to pay for health insurance, which caused the compensation figure to revert back to what it is in the Charter ($350/year for councilors, $500/year for mayor) with no health insurance. The details about why that benefit was ended can be found in an earlier blog post here.

In the current budget (2021-23), the City of Ashland has allocated $142,609 to health insurance coverage for councilors, compared to the $2,800 that is budgeted for cash compensation annually. This comes out to $20,373 per elected official per year or $1,698 per elected official per month. This is what Ashland used to spend providing health insurance to its elected leaders.

The Proposal

Earlier this year, the Council voted to put a measure before Ashland voters to increase the stipend from $500/year for the mayor and $350/year for councilors to $900/month each for the mayor and councilors.

For an elected leader who averages 10 hours per week, this comes out to: $20.77/hr.

For an elected leader who averages 15 hours per week, this comes out to: $13.85/hr.

For an elected leader who averages 20 hours per week, this comes out to: $10.38/hr.  

This change helps the City meet two important goals:

1.      Making elected office accessible for low-income residents who cannot afford to volunteer 10-20 hours per week on a regular basis – in alignment with our social equity and racial justice goals.

2.      Saving money by reducing the annual budget expense for Council compensation by $69,809 or 48% (using 2022-23 budget figures that included paying for health insurance for the mayor and councilors).