Johnson City reviews salary for juvenile court judge; staff cites market comparators

City staff presented a resolution to establish compensation and benefits for the juvenile court judge for an eight‑year elected term following the announced departure of the incumbent, Judge Green.

Deputy City Manager Steve Willis told the commission the prior setup had been budget neutral and that market analysis was not conducted in 2018. As part of justifying the proposed pay, staff cited comparator salaries: a Sessions Court judge in Washington County (salary cited as $201,546) and county circuit court judges (approximately $220,000). Staff said the proposed package is intended to attract qualified candidates for the upcoming August election.

Public comment and at least one resident speaker asked how any salary overrun would be covered and whether guaranteed annual cost‑of‑living adjustments should instead be aligned to the budgeted COLA that city employees receive. Commissioners discussed the historical practice: the juvenile judge’s eight‑year term has previously carried fixed annual adjustments rather than tying increases to annual city employee merit or COLA cycles. Staff and commissioners noted the city’s juvenile court is atypical in its structure compared with county or state court systems and acknowledged the city likely lags behind market rates.

Commissioners also thanked Judge Green for 24 years of service; staff indicated the petition filing deadline for the seat is March 10. No final separate vote on the juvenile compensation resolution was recorded in a standalone transcript segment; the consent agenda procedure and pulled items were discussed and remaining consent items were approved later in the meeting.