Carroll County Compensation Board Weighs Leftover State Mandates And Inflation In FY24 Elected Officials’ Salary Recommendation

The Carroll County Compensation Board met last night (Thursday) to discuss and approve a recommendation for elected officials’ Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 salaries and reached a consensus in under an hour for increases ranging from 17 to nine percent. Mike Franey, representing the County Recorder, was selected to serve as board chair, PJ Greteman, representing the County Sheriff, was chosen as vice chair, and Diane Janning, representing the County Auditor, was selected as board secretary. The compensation board typically consists of seven members, but only four could vote during Thursday’s meeting. Jeff Cayler, who has represented the County Attorney in recent years, is disqualified due to his appointment as interim Carroll City Manager, and the Board of Supervisors’ two delegates could not attend. Last year, an unfunded “Back the Blue” mandate from the legislature requiring sheriffs to be compensated at a level comparable to other similar positions led to an unusually high recommendation of a 28-percent salary increase. The supervisors cut that recommendation to about 15 percent for FY23. However, Greteman says it still falls short of what the law requires.

Previously, there was no additional revenue source for the county to support such an increase, but Greteman notes the new jail, which the Sheriff oversees, is expected to generate approximately $600,000 in revenue from out-of-county prisoners in its first year. The other representatives made very similar opening requests for their respective offices. Whitaker says they all want to correct what they see as misalignment in elected officials’ compensation, but they must do it pragmatically.

Whitaker made the first formal recommendation of the meeting, suggesting a 15 percent increase for the Sheriff, 12 percent for the Treasurer, Recorder, and County Attorney, and nine percent for the Auditor and Supervisors. He says these figures are a legitimate effort to meet the state’s Back the Blue requirements for law enforcement, begin closing gaps in the other offices, and is conscientious of taxpayers. Whitaker’s motion died due to a lack of a second. A similar motion from Greteman for a 17-percent increase for the Sheriff, 12 percent for the Treasurer, Recorder, and County Attorney, 10 percent for the Auditor, and nine percent for the Supervisors garnered support from all four voting members and passed unanimously. Janning suggested a one-year, $3,500 stipend for the Auditor to prepare the county’s budget, but that motion failed on a 2-2 vote with Janning and Greteman in support. The Carroll County Compensation Board’s recommendation goes to the Board of Supervisors for final approval. The supervisors can adjust the proposals, but any changes must be done equally across all positions, excluding supervisor salaries. Video from Thursday’s meeting can be found included below.
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