On Thursday, June 6, the Budget & Finance committee of the Dutchess County Legislature considered and passed a resolution from Chairman Gregg Pulver (R-Pine Plains) to provide 12.5% raises to county-wide electeds and 6% raises for county legislators. The vote was 8-4.
When asked on the floor how the 3% per year number was arrived at despite inflation being below 2%, Chairman Pulver admitted that “The 3% number came up quite frankly because we’re now giving a county-wide elected official a 3% salary [increase] next year and the year after which would be the comptroller. We voted two years ago to raise the comptroller’s salary… So that’s where the 3% came from.”
“There is no reason cited for the amount of the raises aside from the fact that they gave the comptroller that raise back in 2017 and there haven’t been raises in awhile,” said Legislator Kristofer Munn. “I would want to see a cross-county comparison on total compensation before considering raises.”
Current compensation packages including medical, insurance, pension contribution, car allowance:
- County Executive: $191,973.41
- Sheriff: $182,113.20
- County Clerk: $149,558.87
- County Comptroller: $126,526.53
Voting in favor of the measure were legislators Pulver, Will Truitt (R-Hyde Park), Don Sagliano (R-Pleasant Valley), Joe Incoronato (R-Wappingers Falls), Donna Bolner (R-LaGrange), Tom Keith (R-Town of Poughkeepsie), Barbara Jeter-Jackson (D-City of Poughkeepsie) and John Metzger (R-East Fishkill).
Opposing the salary hikes in committee were legislators Munn, Hannah Black (D-Hyde Park), Randy Johnson (D-City of Poughkeepsie) and Nick Page (D-Beacon).
Like term limits and his local law to weaken disclosure rules, Pulver put forward the salary legislation without any warning or discussion across the aisle.
The resolution moves to the full 25-person board on Monday, June 10 for final passage.
