Committee advances bill to raise pay ceiling and expand boards for small-city utility authorities

The House Committee on County and Municipal Government advanced House Bill 141, a measure aimed at changing how small cities set compensation and terms for public-utility board members.

Representative Brown, who presented the bill, said, “What it deals with is cities that are under 5,000 population and ... adjust the compensation for the directors and for the board members.” He described the proposal as giving small cities more flexibility to attract board members and allowing them “if they so choose to expand from five members to seven members.” Brown also said the bill would align public-utility board terms with municipalities that previously extended municipal terms.

Committee members asked whether the bill would require a local vote to authorize any pay increases or merely raise the statutory ceiling. Representative Brown clarified the measure “is giving them the option” and does not force a pay increase; it would raise the ceiling so local governments could choose whether to increase pay.

Representative Fedler moved an amendment to make the act effective immediately rather than on a later date; the amendment was seconded and adopted by voice vote. The committee then considered the bill as amended and advanced it out of committee by voice vote.

The bill was discussed as applying specifically to cities with populations under 5,000 and tied to earlier legislation that extended municipal office terms; the exact proposed monetary amounts mentioned in the transcript were unclear in one passage and should be confirmed in the bill text. The committee did not record a roll-call tally in the provided transcript; minutes indicate voice approval and the bill was given to the board for further processing.

The committee moved on to additional bills after advancing HB 141.