Wicomico County commission recommends multi-year step increases for executive, council and sheriff

The Wicomico County Compensation Review Commission on Nov. (date in transcript not specified) finalized a draft report recommending multi-year, step increases for the county executive, county council officers and members, and the sheriff and agreed to submit the report to the County Council at its Dec. 2 meeting.

The commission recommended raising the county executive's base salary from $107,000 with $2,000 annual step increases beginning Dec. 2026 and reaching $115,000 by 2029. It recommended $1,500 annual step increases for the county council president (from $25,000 to $31,000 by 2029), for the vice president (from $23,000 to $29,000 by 2029), and for council members (from $21,000 to $27,000 by 2029). After hearing from Sheriff Mike Lewis, the commission recorded a unanimous vote on a recommendation for the sheriff's pay: a current base of $117,000 with $6,000 increases beginning Dec. 2026 (the report notes the vote's result was included).

The commission said it used comparative data from Cecil, Frederick and Anne Arundel counties and the Maryland Association of Counties FY25 survey, and it invited county HR Manager Katie Garvin, former and current county executives and council members and the sheriff to describe duties and workloads. Commission members cited factors that informed their recommendations, including population and budget comparisons, department responsibilities, benefits and retirement plans, private- and nonprofit-sector pay, and the county's fiscal context.

Members debated how much background to include in the published report after some public comments questioned the commission's legitimacy. Dr. Margaret Sebastian and other members urged a short 'justification' section that cites the county charter and the Maryland Constitution provision on compensation for elected officials; several members suggested putting more-detailed materials, citations and a fiscal fact sheet in an appendix or attachment rather than lengthening the main summary. "I would like to suggest that we keep this clean, simple, not overly complicated," the commission chair said during the meeting, adding she would expand on key points when presenting to the council.

The commission agreed to attach a fiscal fact sheet that summarizes Wicomico County's fiscal position, including the county's comparatively low median household income and its dependence on state aid (members described a disparity grant as a meaningful share of the county's general revenue). Members also discussed whether to include a roll-call listing of the commission's votes in the report; some said that detailed roll-call names are recorded in the minutes and that a date reference would allow readers to cross-check the vote.

The commission voted to approve the draft report language, to add a brief justification citing charter provisions, and to include supporting documents as an attachment. The group set Dec. 2 as the target date to present the report to the County Council and discussed logistics for the presentation; the chair said the group would not typically use a PowerPoint but could expand verbally at the council meeting. "I would personally thank you as well, for being here, putting up with me and keeping me straight," the chair said in closing.

The commission approved the minutes of its Oct. 22 meeting early in the session and adjourned by voice vote. The report submitted to the County Council will include the commission's recommendations, a brief justification of the commission's formation and authority, and supporting attachments including the fiscal fact sheet and the MACo FY25 data references.