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Committees table municipal clerk salary increases after extended debate on authority, budget and retroactivity
Summary
A contentious Finance Committee discussion on March 31 over proposed municipal clerk deputy pay raises — which the clerk set under Ohio Revised Code §1901.31(H) — ended with the committee tabling the salary ordinance to request more legal and budget analysis.
A contentious discussion over municipal clerk compensation ended with the Finance Committee voting on March 31 to table action on a salary ordinance after an extended exchange about statutory authority, budget impact and retroactivity.
The municipal clerk of Elyria submitted a letter invoking Ohio Revised Code §1901.31(H) to set compensation for deputy clerks. The letter proposed increases effective Jan. 1 of 2025 (6%), 2026 (5%) and 2027 (4%). Committee members said the request arrived on a revised agenda and asked for time to evaluate budget impacts and the relationship to an ongoing citywide salary study.
Law Director Derry told the committee the Revised Code gives the municipal clerk authority to set clerk-office salaries but cautioned that the city budget still governs what can be paid. Derry said the clerk’s statutory authority has been upheld in other municipalities but added there are potential legal challenges if council were to refuse; a mandamus action is a possible, although not certain, outcome.
Council members voiced a range of concerns: some said the clerk’s office had declined to participate in a salary study, others said the increases approximate AFSCME bargaining results and argued that non‑represented employees should not automatically receive parity without union representation and dues. Finance Director Pawlowski provided an estimate in committee that a 6% increase for the entire municipal court would cost about $143,000 for one year and that the clerk’s office share would be roughly $70,000 for one year; committee members asked for a clearer, itemized fiscal estimate.
Committee members ultimately moved and seconded a motion to table the matter to a later date to allow the law director and finance staff time to provide additional legal options and budgetary figures. The motion to table carried on a voice vote.
Ending: The clerk’s letter and proposed multi‑year increases will return to committee after the law director and finance staff provide further guidance on legal options, budget impacts and whether council may limit action to 2025 only.
