City Council Chair Tommy Waters saying Council members can survive voters’ anger about exorbitant pay raises, and if members devote 100% effort to doing a good job they will earn people’s trust, shows a complete miscomprehension of what taxpayers are angry about.
The issue is: You can’t take our money without our permission!
The current process by which Council members get pay raises, through the recommendation of a salary commission (appointed by Council members), may be legal, but is susceptible to conflict of interest. Pay raises should be given to voters to approve.
The commission should provide voters with four pay recommendations, one being zero change. The recommendation that gets the most votes is approved.
If voters give no raise, that reveals something about constituents’ perception of the job Council members are doing. Personally, I think the City Council deserves a raise at this time, but one more consistent with the national averages of 6% to 10%.
Mathew Johnson
Kaimuki
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