Pasadena City Council May Place Pay Raise Issue on Ballot

The Pasadena City Council decided Monday to have the city attorney draft two April ballot measures that could result in a massive raise for its members, whose compensation has remained at $50 a meeting since 1968.

The seven-member council, with the exception of dissenting Councilman William E. Thomson Jr., voted to move forward with efforts to change the pay system.

Acknowledging that the path toward changing their salaries is mired with the potholes of public opinion, council members set a final vote on the ordinances for Jan. 13. If approved, they would be placed on the April ballot.

The first measure proposed by Councilman Chris Holden mirrors one used for nearly 20 years in Los Angeles, where council members were the highest paid in the nation. It calls for a committee to review pay and recommend what it should be.

The council would appoint the committee and be allowed to accept or reject the committee’s recommendation. After the committee sets the initial rate, it would be allowed to give a raise of up to 5% annually.

The second measure, suggested by Mayor William Paparian, calls for the 1968 pay rate to be adjusted using the consumer price index to 1996 rates. That would result in council members getting about $1,000 a month--a rate comparable to other large cities in California--rather than the $250 they get currently, an official said.