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Salaries and Emoluments Commission elects Commissioner Hayes as chair, opens review of mayor pay
Summary
The Salaries and Emoluments Commission elected Commissioner Hayes as chair and Pat Redmond as vice chair and agreed to begin a review of the mayor’s salary (currently $145,000), asking staff to gather five years of pay-change data and to schedule follow-up meetings with public comment this summer.
The Salaries and Emoluments Commission of the Anchorage Municipality on June 16 elected Commissioner Hayes as chair and Pat Redmond as vice chair and voted to begin a formal review of the mayor’s compensation.
Commissioner Hayes accepted the nomination and said, “Yes, I’m willing to serve as chair.” The commission confirmed Pat Redmond as vice chair and the outgoing chair handed the meeting over to Redmond to continue business.
Why it matters: members said they want to complete the review well before the municipal budgeting season so any recommended change can be incorporated into preparation for the next fiscal year. Karen Dorsett told the panel the mayor’s current salary is $145,000 a year and noted prior adjustments in 2015 and 2020. “I would suggest somewhere around 5% to 8%” as a possible adjustment range, Dorsett said, urging the commission to consider comparable public positions and recent collective-bargaining increases.
What the commission decided: members did not adopt a pay change at the June 16 meeting. Instead they agreed to collect data, follow the commission’s standard multi-meeting process that provides the public an opportunity to be heard before a final decision, and schedule one or more follow-up sessions this summer. Clerk Jasmine said she would “send a poll out and look at availability dates” to set a meeting in late July or early August and to request five years of salary-change data from human resources and relevant municipal offices.
Details and next steps: commissioners asked staff to assemble comparable figures for municipal collective-bargaining units, the assembly, and other Alaska public offices (for example, the mayors of Juneau and Fairbanks and the university chancellor) so the panel can review how mayor pay has tracked with other public compensation. Commissioners also noted that if a member’s term ends mid-process, the vice chair or an appointee may need to fill gaps in continuity.
The meeting opened with routine business — approval of the agenda and prior minutes — and closed after members confirmed the leadership elections and scheduled follow-up work. There were no public speakers on the line during the meeting. The commission will publicly notice subsequent meetings as required before making any change to compensation.
