Chico Unified board raises member stipend to $1,250 and ties future increases to employee raises

The board debated increasing the board stipend — permitted by Education Code up to $2,000 — and considered multiple approaches including an inflation‑adjusted figure, tying increases to employee wages, or setting a flat maximum now. After discussion, a motion prevailed to set the stipend at $1,250 per year and to automatically increase the stipend by the same percentage as employee bargaining‑unit raises, up to the statutory cap of $2,000.

Board members argued for objective, Googleable criteria (an inflation calculation) and fairness to future board members; others discussed whether the board president should receive a larger stipend for extra duties but the board retained equal pay for members. The motion passed on a roll‑call vote recorded as unanimous (5–0). Staff said the language will be word‑smith ed in the final resolution and they will add an item that the stipend will increase by the same percentage as employee bargaining‑unit wage increases until reaching $2,000.

Why this matters: Stipend increases are intended to make board service more accessible and to reduce the need for repeated board votes on compensation. The indexing mechanism ties board pay adjustments to district employee compensation changes.

Next steps: Staff will draft final resolution language reflecting $1,250 starting stipend and the percentage‑indexing clause for a subsequent formal adoption step and posting.