Pacific Grove council introduces ordinance to raise mayor and council pay; health benefits tabled

Pacific Grove City Council voted on May 7 to introduce an ordinance increasing compensation for the mayor and council members and to remove a separate proposal to provide city-paid medical benefits for council members for later consideration.

The action came after more than an hour of public comment during which dozens of residents urged the council either to reject the pay increase or to send the matter to a public ballot. Opponents cited the city’s constrained budget and competing capital needs; supporters said modest pay helps broaden who can serve in local office.

City Attorney presented the legal background and the limits set by state law, including recent changes enacted by Senate Bill 329 and related Government Code provisions. The ordinance the council considered applied the state‑authorized formula — roughly a 5% per year adjustment measured since the last local raise — resulting in new monthly pay levels the city attorney said would be close to $966 for council members and $1,610 for the mayor if the council applied the state model.

Mayor Nick Smith moved the council adopt a version of the ordinance that excluded the section creating medical benefits for council members; the motion to remove the…