Commission recommends charter language to set mayoral and council pay; sitting members ineligible until reelection

The Bastrop Charter Review Commission voted unanimously to amend section 3.07 of the city charter to set specific compensation amounts: $400 per month for the mayor and $250 per month for council members. The commission also adopted language that sitting council members at the time of a compensation increase shall be ineligible to receive the additional funds until reelected.

Commissioner Doc Jackson moved the amendment, saying the amounts would serve as a modest honorarium rather than a full-time salary. "I think it puts council in an awkward position to set their own pay," one commissioner warned, but the body included the ineligibility clause to limit the appearance of self-dealing. Alan, the city attorney, proposed wording clarifying that sitting council members "shall be ineligible to receive the additional funds until reelected," language the commission accepted.

The discussion referenced recent examples in other Texas cities where councils setting their own pay provoked citizen backlash; commissioners said a modest, voter-facing charter recommendation or a citizen committee could avoid those optics. After debate on phrasing and implementation timing, the amendment passed unanimously and will proceed under the charter's process to the next step toward voter consideration if required.