Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
Opinion: Council Salaries Should Attract Fresno's Best & Brightest
By admin
Published 6 years ago on
December 4, 2018

Share


Opinion
by Darius Assemi
Fresno is California’s fifth-largest city. Its budget this year is $1.15 billion. But despite all of our hard work and steady population growth, we remain a city with serious challenges — and a huge reservoir of untapped potential.
To move Fresno ahead and make it the city we all want it to be, we need to break out of our conservative mindset on Fresno City Council salaries.
On Thursday, the council members will take up the thorny issue of whether to raise salaries for the first time since 2006. Inflation alone would justify a significant increase.

Pay Council Members Same as County Supervisors

However, Oliver Baines’ proposal to hike council salaries from $65,000 a year to $80,000 will not entice seasoned professionals to run for the council.
My recommendation: We pay Fresno City Council members exactly what our representatives on the Fresno County Board of Supervisors make: $124,454. And we pay the council president the same salary as the county board chair: $140,011.
I recognize that people on both sides of the political aisle will wonder if I’ve lost my mind. Conservatives will say such a salary is too high. Liberals will say that we should put the extra money into social programs.

Need Council That Can Team With Mayor to Grow Economy

But, as Mayor Lee Brand has said many times, Fresno’s No. 1 goal should be growing the local economy. As businesses expand and prosper, our General Fund expands. And it is the General Fund that pays for public safety, parks, and the other things that support our quality of life.

Equalize the pay with the Fresno County Board of Supervisors, and you will see competitive City Council races involving our best and brightest. And, while my proposed salaries might appear high, they will cost each taxpayer just a few extra pennies a year. That’s a bargain in my book.
Though Fresno utilizes the strong-mayor form of government and places great responsibility on the mayor and his team, our city still needs a strong city council to advocate for citizens, service constituent needs, and ensure that the General Plan delivers the biggest bang for the buck.
In addition, we need a city council team that will collaborate with the mayor to grow our economy and create new opportunities while reviving neglected industries and neighborhoods in our community.
We also need a city council composed of wise hands who understand how to remain focused on long-term goals while solving short-term problems.

We Can Do Better

Paying someone $65,000, $80,000 or even $90,000 a year will not inspire bright, seasoned people to run for the Fresno City Council.
Who would you want managing a $1.15 billion budget? At $65,000 or $80,000, you attract folks who feel the civic duty to serve their city. Some of these folks sacrifice their careers and businesses to do this work. They often are leaving jobs with better pay.
If we expect them to take a council job seriously and devote their full-time attention to it, they should get paid appropriately!
Equalize the pay with the Fresno County Board of Supervisors, and you will see competitive city council races involving our best and brightest. And, while my proposed salaries might appear high, they will cost each taxpayer just a few extra pennies a year. That’s a bargain in my book.
When you look around Fresno, you see the ugly results of our tight-fisted approach to paying council members.
It’s time to adopt the mantra embraced by business. It’s one I learned long ago: You get what you pay for.
 

DON'T MISS

Newsom Gaslights on Potential Gas Price Hikes in Fresno Visit

DON'T MISS

Automakers to Trump: Please Require Us to Sell Electric Vehicles

DON'T MISS

President Biden Welcomes 2024 NBA Champion Boston Celtics to White House

DON'T MISS

Ohtani Makes History With 3rd MVP, Judge Claims 2nd AL Honor

DON'T MISS

Trump Chooses Pam Bondi for Attorney General Pick After Gaetz Withdraws

DON'T MISS

Average Rate on a 30-Year Mortgage in the US Rises to Highest Level Since July

DON'T MISS

Cutting in Line? American Airlines’ New Boarding Tech Might Stop You at Now Over 100 Airports

DON'T MISS

MLB Will Test Robot Umpires at 13 Spring Training Ballparks Hosting 19 Teams

DON'T MISS

Death Toll in Gaza From Israel-Hamas War Passes 44,000, Palestinian Officials Say

DON'T MISS

Jussie Smollett’s Conviction in 2019 Attack on Himself Is Overturned

UP NEXT

Fresno Council Lowers Speed Limits on Friant and Audubon

UP NEXT

How About an Honest Conversation About the Range of Light Monument Proposal?

UP NEXT

Police Report Reveals Assault Allegations Against Hegseth, Trump’s Pick for Defense Secretary

UP NEXT

Gaetz Withdraws as Trump’s Pick for Attorney General

UP NEXT

How Trump Can Earn a Place in History That He Did Not Expect

UP NEXT

‘Woke’ Terminology Not Commonly Used by Americans: YouGov Survey

UP NEXT

Republicans on House Ethics Reject for Now Releasing Report on Matt Gaetz

UP NEXT

Demography Drives Destiny and Right Now California Is Losing

UP NEXT

Senate to Vote on Sanders’ Resolution to Block Arms Sales to Israel

UP NEXT

Defining Deviancy Down. And Down. And Down.

Ohtani Makes History With 3rd MVP, Judge Claims 2nd AL Honor

55 minutes ago

Trump Chooses Pam Bondi for Attorney General Pick After Gaetz Withdraws

1 hour ago

Average Rate on a 30-Year Mortgage in the US Rises to Highest Level Since July

2 hours ago

Cutting in Line? American Airlines’ New Boarding Tech Might Stop You at Now Over 100 Airports

2 hours ago

MLB Will Test Robot Umpires at 13 Spring Training Ballparks Hosting 19 Teams

2 hours ago

Death Toll in Gaza From Israel-Hamas War Passes 44,000, Palestinian Officials Say

3 hours ago

Jussie Smollett’s Conviction in 2019 Attack on Himself Is Overturned

3 hours ago

Fresno Council Lowers Speed Limits on Friant and Audubon

3 hours ago

How About an Honest Conversation About the Range of Light Monument Proposal?

4 hours ago

UConn Coach Geno Auriemma Breaks NCAA Wins Record With 1,217th Victory

4 hours ago

Newsom Gaslights on Potential Gas Price Hikes in Fresno Visit

Gov. Gavin Newsom in a stop Thursday in Fresno defended the recent actions of his air board, saying he takes “pride” in new clim...

38 seconds ago

38 seconds ago

Newsom Gaslights on Potential Gas Price Hikes in Fresno Visit

President Joe Biden with Mary Barra, the chief executive of General Motors, at the Detroit Auto Show, Sept. 14, 2022. President-elect Donald Trump has promised to erase the Biden administration’s tailpipe rules designed to get carmakers to produce electric vehicles, but most U.S. automakers want to keep them. (Doug Mills/The New York Times)
31 minutes ago

Automakers to Trump: Please Require Us to Sell Electric Vehicles

35 minutes ago

President Biden Welcomes 2024 NBA Champion Boston Celtics to White House

55 minutes ago

Ohtani Makes History With 3rd MVP, Judge Claims 2nd AL Honor

Former Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, speaks before Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump arrives to speak at a campaign rally at First Horizon Coliseum, Saturday, Nov. 2, 2024, in Greensboro, NC. (AP/Alex Brandon)
1 hour ago

Trump Chooses Pam Bondi for Attorney General Pick After Gaetz Withdraws

2 hours ago

Average Rate on a 30-Year Mortgage in the US Rises to Highest Level Since July

2 hours ago

Cutting in Line? American Airlines’ New Boarding Tech Might Stop You at Now Over 100 Airports

2 hours ago

MLB Will Test Robot Umpires at 13 Spring Training Ballparks Hosting 19 Teams

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend