Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Local Government Compensation topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Saratoga Springs schedules public hearing on two alternate charter salary measures amid legal concerns
Summary
The City Council will hold a public hearing on two alternate local laws to amend section 2.1 of the city charter to change pay for elected officials; staff and at least one commissioner warned the measures are mutually exclusive and could raise legal risks.
The Saratoga Springs City Council announced a public hearing for two alternate local laws to amend section 2.1 of the city charter, titled “City Council Supervisors, Deputies and Employees, Officers' Eligibility, Terms of Office Salaries,” at its next meeting.
The council will consider one local law that increases salaries for all council members by the same amount and an alternative law that raises the mayor’s compensation by a larger percentage or stipend. City staff advised the council the two measures are mutually exclusive and may not be enacted simultaneously, and one staff member warned the council it should decide which version to vote on during the discussion period.
Tony, a city staff member who advised on the legislation, said plainly that “the council cannot enact both these laws at the same time.” Council members discussed a procedural approach in which the council would decide which version to advance, then vote on that version. No vote on either law was recorded during this meeting; both measures are scheduled for public hearing and likely a vote at the next meeting.
Council discussion also included concerns about legal exposure and precedent if the charter’s historical practice of equal pay were changed. One council member noted that the municipal home rule law sections referenced in the meeting (sections 24 and 25) and the charter’s historical practice may affect whether differential pay for elected officials could invite a legal challenge. Several commissioners said they supported cost-of-living adjustments applied across the board but expressed caution about introducing a differential stipend for the mayor without resolving potential procedural or legal questions first.
The city attorney/staff also advised that, procedurally, the council could treat the measures as separate agenda items or decide during the discussion which version to move to a vote; in either case the council must make a motion and a second before a formal vote.
No formal action was taken at this meeting; the public hearing and votes on the local laws were announced for the council’s next meeting.
