Decatur council holds first reading on higher mayor and council pay; debate over timing and oversight

The Decatur City Council on Feb. 26 held a first reading of an ordinance that would raise the mayor's and city council's salaries for the term beginning in November 2025.

Kyle Demeester, finance director, told the council the city must complete any change within six months of the election and that Feb. 26 was the statutory deadline to act. "The law requires that in order to change it, it has to be complete within 6 months prior to the election," Demeester said. He told the council the proposed increases reflect comparisons with other Alabama mayors and the scope of responsibilities the mayor holds, including oversight of a roughly $100 million general fund and more than 500 employees.

The ordinance was read for a first reading as Ordinance 2054602; no adoption vote occurred at the special-call session. Demeester repeated that salaries had not been adjusted since 2012 and that the proposed mayoral salary, including a separate car allowance, is intended to align Decatur with peer cities. "Salaries and wages for these positions have not been adjusted since 2012," he said.

Why it matters: The mayor oversees city operations and a large portion of the municipal budget; the council's compensation can affect who seeks office and how members balance public service with private employment. Demeester said the proposal aims to broaden the candidate pool by making compensation competitive.

Council discussion focused on timing, the ordinance's legal constraints, and possible related measures. One council member asked whether random drug testing could be added for elected officials, saying elected officials have "such responsibility" that they should be "clear headed." City staff and the council's legal advisor said random testing would raise legal issues because council members and the mayor are not safety-sensitive employees; the legal advisor said penalties tied to compensation could be enacted by separate ordinance but would still raise constitutional and criminal-justice questions and might require conviction to implement. "If you're asking is there a way to justify a random drug test, answer to that is I do not believe so," the legal advisor said. He added that penalties that affect pay would need to be separately enacted and would have their own legal limits.

Council members and public commenters also debated whether the council should table the ordinance until additional policies on waste, fraud and abuse or other oversight mechanisms are adopted; a resident urged tabling the pay ordinance until "further policies and procedures are developed." Another speaker opposed increasing the mayor's pay given recent concerns about departmental oversight and called for clearer incentives tied to performance.

Details in the ordinance: Demeester said the council president's pay would be set at 20% of the mayor's salary and council members at 17.5%, an increase from the 2012 ratio. He clarified the car allowance is listed separately on pay stubs and is taxable; it is not included when calculating the council members' percentages.

Next steps: Because this was a first reading, the ordinance will return for additional readings and potential adoption at later meetings. Demeester repeated that state law requires timing within six months of the election, and council members discussed whether to advance the ordinance on the March agenda or to postpone for additional policy work.

A number of residents urged the council to attach additional accountability measures before raising compensation; others urged competitiveness to attract qualified candidates. No final vote on adoption was recorded at the Feb. 26 meeting.

Ending: The council left the ordinance at first reading and scheduled further consideration during regular meetings; the council's next formal action on the ordinance will determine whether the proposed changes take effect for the term beginning November 2025.