Green Bay personnel committee amends proposed ordinance to set mayor’s starting salary at $140,000

GREEN BAY, Wis. — The Green Bay Personnel Committee on Tuesday approved an amended ordinance setting the mayor’s starting salary for the 2027 term at $140,000 and forwarded the measure to the full Common Council for consideration.

Committee members debated consultant recommendations, comparable municipal pay, and how the ordinance ties future increases to changes in city employee pay. Committee chair opened the item for discussion and staff reviewed comparables and calculation options drawn from a June personnel packet and a Cunningham Butler total rewards recommendation.

Lisa (staff member) said she had compiled the consultant data into a spreadsheet showing combined mayor and city administrator costs in comparable municipalities and that Green Bay’s combined cost appeared low compared with some peers. “I would like to see this go up,” Lisa said, summarizing her analysis that produced a recommended 2027 base of $128,000 — about $14,000 higher than the consultant’s limited-scope recommendation.

Committee members discussed options including setting a starting salary for the full four-year term, tying future adjustments to a calculated percentage based on city employee annual changes, or revisiting the package each term. A committee member noted the ordinance’s structure would apply a one-time adjustment at the start of the 2027 term and thereafter adjust the salary by a combined percentage equal to the four annual percentage changes for city employees in the prior four years, rounded to the nearest whole percentage.

Several members cited historical context: the mayor’s salary had been $82,500 in 2010 and, adjusted by CPI, would be roughly $122,500 today, a point used to argue for catch-up increases. Other members raised budgetary concerns and said an immediate larger jump would increase the city’s personnel costs materially over the term.

Alderman Hankfords moved to amend the ordinance to set the starting salary for the new term at $140,000; the amendment was seconded. The committee approved the amendment by a 3–1 vote and then approved the ordinance as amended. Committee chair noted the committee action sends the amended ordinance to the full council for further consideration.

The rest of the ordinance’s provisions — including the formula for post-2027 adjustments tied to city employee percentage changes — were left intact. The committee scheduled routine personnel items and adjourned; the full council will consider the amended ordinance at a later meeting.