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Council debates raising stipends under Act 131; sends ordinance idea back to ACT committee
Summary
After discussion about recruitment, optics and budget constraints, council instructed the ACT committee to draft an ordinance that would raise future council and mayor stipends consistent with Act 131; any increase would take effect for newly elected members.
Council discussed whether to increase council and mayor stipends under state Act 131, which raised allowable compensation caps, and directed the ACT committee to draft ordinance language for future councils.
Council members debated optics and practical benefits: proponents said modest increases help recruit a broader pool of candidates and reflect the significant time commitment involved in municipal service. Opponents said raising compensation during tight budgets could look bad and noted any change would only apply to officials elected after an ordinance takes effect. "I don't think any one of us is here for the money," one councilmember said, but added that updated compensation could make it easier for working professionals to serve.
Staff clarified there is no automatic notification from the Commonwealth when legislative caps change and that any local ordinance would set the specific stipend amount (the state raised the possible council stipend to $6,915 in the example discussed and the mayor’s cap to $8,400). The council voted to send drafting and numeric options back to the ACT committee and Finance for further analysis and to prepare an ordinance for future deliberation.
Next steps: ACT committee to draft ordinance language and proposed stipend amounts and return to full council for discussion and potential ordinance action.
