Board clears mid‑year pay adjustments to address rising minimum wage and retention
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Summary
Supervisors approved moving previously set‑aside funds into department budgets to implement a two‑tier mid‑year compensation plan: $1.50/hr for grades 13 and below and a 3.5% increase for grades 14 and above, effective the pay period beginning Jan. 3.
The Coconino County Board of Supervisors unanimously approved a reallocation of budget authority Nov. 24 that will allow a mid‑year compensation adjustment for eligible regular county employees.
Deputy County Manager Erica Philpott said the board had previously set aside funds during the budget process and the reallocation moves that money into department budgets so raises can be processed. The measure responds in part to a Flagstaff minimum‑wage increase and aims to improve recruitment and retention for entry‑level positions.
Philpott described a two‑tier approach: employees in grades 13 and below will receive a $1.50 per hour flat increase (raising the county's foundational entry grade closer to $21 per hour), while employees in grades 14 and above receive a 3.5% increase. "Where a dollar‑and‑a‑half per hour is greater than 3.5% for an employee, we will give the greater of the two increases," Philpott said. Eligible regular employees hired prior to Dec. 20, 2025 will receive the adjustment; temporary employees are not included.
Philpott said finance and human resources reviewed individual positions for compression issues and that law enforcement and detention pay plans, which already received full increments at the fiscal‑year start, will not receive further adjustments under this item. The county's finance team will provide a department‑by‑department cost tally to supervisors after accounting for vacancies.
Board members praised the plan as fiscally responsible and supportive of frontline staff. Supervisor Patrice Horstman said the board and county management had been cautious about compensation but emphasized staff’s value; Supervisor Lina Fowler and others expressed support for proceeding now that funds were available.
The motion to approve the budget transfer and allow the January pay adjustments was moved by Supervisor Begay, seconded by Supervisor Horstman, and passed unanimously.
Next steps: finance will finalize total county payroll cost figures and county HR will implement adjustments in payroll effective with the pay period starting Jan. 3 and appearing in checks issued Jan. 22.