Riviera Beach utility board approves $1,000 monthly stipend for district members after heated debate

The Riviera Beach Utility Special District Board of Directors voted 3–2 on Sept. 17 to provide a $1,000 monthly stipend to board members and the mayor for participation in utility district meetings.

Board member Bruce Guyton, who introduced the item, framed the stipend as compensation for substantial out‑of‑meeting time and oversight duties. “It takes a lot of time, a lot of meetings, not just public meetings, private meetings,” Guyton said, and proposed a $1,500 monthly stipend before the board amended the amount.

Opponents said such a pay increase should go to the voters. Vice Chair Koshamba Miller Anderson said she opposed reinstating a stipend without voter approval and noted the board’s prior actions on the issue: “If we want to increase our salaries, then we know that we have to take that before the voters,” she said. Board member Glenn Spiritus also opposed the stipend, citing precedent and concern about circumventing voter control.

Supporters argued the workload has grown with major capital projects, including the city’s new water treatment effort. Chair Shirley Lanier urged recognition of the time commitment and oversight needed for projects she described as “over a billion dollars on the table,” and said the added pay would help ensure sustained attention.

Guyton moved that the district pay board members and the mayor a stipend for utility district meetings. The motion was seconded and subsequently amended on the floor to $1,000 per month. The roll call vote was: Priscilla Davis Panier — yes; Bruce Guyton — yes; Koshamba Miller Anderson — no; Glenn Spiritus — no; Shirley Lanier — yes. The motion passed.

The board also directed that the stipend be reflected in the district’s operational budget and discussed the possibility of submitting any broader council pay changes to voters in a city election.

Board members noted that some who oppose the stipend plan to decline payment if it is adopted. The manager and finance director indicated the operational budget would be adjusted to include the stipend amount.

The stipend item had a long history in Riviera Beach: board members said a prior stipend had existed, then was stopped years earlier. In discussion the group referenced an original stipend adopted in the mid‑2010s and later removed; managers said the city would provide documentation and history to the board as requested.

The stipend vote came before the board’s formal adoption of the FY25‑26 operating budget, which the board took up later in the meeting.