Ad hoc committee recommends modest stipend increases, keeps CPI-based annual adjustments for mayor and council

Trevor Rusczyk, chair of the ad hoc mayor and council compensation review committee, presented the panel’s advisory report to the Mayor and City Council on March 17.

What the committee recommended Rusczyk said the committee recommends keeping the existing annual adjustment formula that prevents salary decreases and applies an increase equal to the year-over-year change in the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U) for the Washington Metropolitan region (the November comparison). For the current cycle the CPI-U year-over-year change used in the committee’s examples was +1%.

Current pay and benefits the committee cited Rusczyk reviewed current compensation figures as presented to the committee: mayor annual salary $36,993; four council members at $29,595 each; one council member who has opted for $27,714. He said elected officials receive a benefits stipend of $4,851.08 per year that may be used for medical/dental/vision or taken as salary or credited to the elected official’s retirement plan. The next scheduled adjustment under the CPI method would be effective July 1, 2026.

Stipend increases for appointed bodies The committee proposed increasing longstanding stipends that have not been adjusted for many years. Current stipends cited by the committee are $3,000 for Planning Commission members, $1,500 for Board of Appeals members, and $1,500 for Historic District Commission members. The committee recommended raising those stipends to $4,000 (Planning Commission), $2,000 (Board of Appeals) and $2,000 (Historic District Commission) to better reflect workload and cost-of-living changes.

Other committee recommendations and next steps The committee recommended no change to benefit flexibility and encouraged the council to consider stipends for other appointed bodies as appropriate; council members noted the Board of Supervisors of Elections and the Charter Commission as possible candidates for future stipend proposals. Rusczyk stressed the committee’s recommendations are advisory and nonbinding; council did not take final action on March 17.

Questions from council Council members asked clarifying questions about which bodies received stipends, the committee’s comparative jurisdiction analysis and the timing of next adjustments. Council members indicated support for the recommendations in principle and suggested any stipend changes would be processed through the city’s budget schedule.

Provenance Topic introduction excerpt: "To begin, I'll cover a little bit of the legal background. So sections 5 and 16 of the city charter establish the salary and benefits of the mayor and members of the city council..."

Topic finish excerpt: "And that is our report for the year." — Chair Trevor Rusczyk