Wednesday, December 06, 2006

Playing with fire


This is the wrong year to propose a pay raise.

Vonderheid: County officials deserve pay hike

Luzerne County’s elected officials are underpaid and deserve a salary increase, according to county Commissioner Todd Vonderheid.

Vonderheid, who has announced he isn’t running for re-election next year, said it might be too late to approve a pay increase for county officials who take office in 2008
.

But maybe not.

Solicitor says there’s time for county pay raises

The commissioners must approve salary increases before the end the year, and a legal notice must be published at least 10 days before they meet, Blaum said Monday in an e-mail. The commissioners can’t approve salary increases next year because the three county commissioner seats are up for election then.

What's the rush? Reassessment was put off until after the election.

I smell a rat. Vondy proposes a pay raise that Urban agrees to then Skrep says no and looks like a hero.

4 comments:

Walter said...

I feel the County Commissioners should not get a pay raise at all...The fact of the matter is that Todd Vonderheid is rarely if ever in the County Courthouse and most of the time Greg and Steve are not there either....These are elected officials that ran for the office of Commississioner for the express purpose of SERVING the taxpayers...not bankrupting them...I feel there should be a two term limit on any elected office in the County and City Government and these Elected Officials need to be aware of their surroundings, this is Luzerne County where the average taxpayer earns 25,000.00 per year and are being taxed and fee's levied until they can just about survive and to ask for a pay raise when the County Budget can not even pay its bills is irresponsible and dangerous...I think Steve Urban should be more opinionated and not take a wait and see attitude....at least Greg knows that the pay raise is wrong...keep this in mind when they all run for office in 2007 and vote responsibly

Walter said...

I feel the desire to serve the people is and should be the motivation for serving as an elected official....not the pay scale and remember the BASE Salary is just that ...a base...the Commissioners recieve a very large expense account along with a travel expense account an also Full Health care benefits that cost the taxpayers over 1000.00 each per month...also a paid pension plan and lifetime life insurance....which all tallied up makes their real salary a whopping 65,000.00 each....Thats not to bad for a full time job that really recieves part time service.

Anonymous said...

Walter, stop with your B.S. already, if money means nothing, why don't you run for school board? Instead you want that extra couple thousand a year for city council....You said it should be for the people. So you won't take any money if elected? No bennifits either?...... if you are, how about just being quiet already....

PA progressive said...

Just tell these people to move here to Berks. We have the highest salaries in the state. Even though they've been limited to COLA's in recent years our row officers earn around $75,000 and our Commissioners about $85,000.

Now that we Democrats are in a majority salaries are frozen through 2011.