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Council repeals earlier pay change for mayor/safety director after legal review; law director cites home-rule authority
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Summary
Council introduced and moved forward with Ordinance 2026-030 to repeal a 2023 pay amendment that combined the mayor and safety-director salaries. The law director told the council Ohio case law and the city's charter permit local council action on compensation; at least one member sought further verification.
Bedford Heights City Council on April 21 considered and moved toward adoption of Ordinance 2026-030, which repeals Ordinance 2023-073 (the amendment that combined compensation for the mayor and the safety director). The measure was presented as an emergency.
A council member raised procedural and legal concerns about changing compensation for an elected official during a term. The council asked the law director to clarify whether state law or the city's charter governs the council's authority.
Law Director Doyle summarized the city's review: Ohio courts have repeatedly held that setting compensation for public officers is an exercise of local self-government. "If your charter reserves home rule ... you have the ability to deviate from the Ohio constitution and the Ohio Revised Code," Doyle said, and noted the city's charter appears to allow council to amend nonunion compensation at any time.
Some council members said they had not received the written clarification or that mailings might have been missed; one member emphasized that residents may not understand the legal nuances and asked for the record to reflect that the issue had been corrected and would not be pursued further at the meeting.
Record of votes: the transcript shows a procedural vote to suspend rules on the ordinance where Councilman Tinker was recorded as voting "No," and subsequent roll-call confirmations led to further consideration. The transcript does not list a full, named vote tally for final adoption in the segments provided.
What happens next: the law director's opinion was read into the record and council signaled it would proceed; council members asked for clear written confirmation and staff follow-up so residents can understand how the charter and state law apply to elected-official compensation.
