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Los Banos council appoints Mary Lerner as full-time city attorney with five-year contract
Summary
The council approved a resolution appointing Mary Lerner as Los Banos city attorney, authorizing a five-year employment agreement with an annual base salary of $280,000 and other management benefits. Council also approved an amendment to the salary schedule.
The Los Banos City Council on Oct. 1 adopted a resolution appointing Mary Lerner as the city's next city attorney and authorized execution of an employment agreement that begins Nov. 17, 2025.
City staff said Lerner brings more than 20 years of experience representing public agencies on governance, land use, labor and employment, regulatory compliance and public safety matters. The proposed contract includes a five-year term with a mutual option for a single three-year extension, an annual base salary of $280,000 ($23,334 per month) and 3% step increases each year. The agreement provides benefits consistent with other management employees, including medical, dental and vision insurance, CalPERS retirement, a retirement health savings plan, deferred compensation, sick leave, three weeks' vacation accrual, education and bilingual incentive pay, a $550 monthly car allowance, and a $100 monthly cell phone allowance.
Staff said there is no fiscal impact beyond amounts already budgeted for fiscal year 2025–26; funds are available in the adopted budget. The council then approved a separate resolution to amend the city's salary schedule to incorporate the new pay range for the city attorney position.
Why it matters: moving from a part-time contract attorney to a full-time city attorney is intended to provide in-house legal capacity for a city the staff said is approaching a population threshold and workload that warrants a full-time attorney.
Council discussion: Mayor Amabile and other council members spoke in favor of bringing a full-time city attorney on staff, citing increased workload and the complexity of municipal governance. The mayor thanked outgoing city attorney Bill Vaughn for his many years of service and welcomed Lerner to the city.
Formal action: councilmember moved to approve Resolution No. 6994 to appoint Mary Lerner and authorize the employment agreement; the motion was seconded and passed by voice vote. A follow-up resolution (No. 6995) to amend the salary schedule to reflect the agreed monthly salary also passed by voice vote.
Ending: Lerner is scheduled to begin Nov. 17, 2025. The city will update its salary schedule and administrative records to reflect the new position and compensation.
