Post-County Election Salaries Depend on Budget Flexibility

By Jonathan Weaver

For the past few months, Armstrong County Commissioners have been budget-crunching for 2016. Those fiscal numbers could make an impact on upcoming term salaries.

Nearly a dozen elected employees – such as coroner, sheriff and the three county commissioners – will only receive a pay increase in 2016 if commissioners elect to give a zero through three percent raise to non-bargaining unit employees, commissioners tentatively adopted Wednesday evening.

Commissioner Rich Fink has now been involved in three hearings because of his 11 years in office.

“I think the action prudent upon us to take is to sort-of follow the format previous boards before us have taken,” Fink said. “I don’t have a crystal ball, so I don’t know what budgets will have in-terms of salary increases.”

The salaries of those 11 elected officials affected include Coroner Brian Myers, Sheriff Bill Rupert, Controller Myra Miller, Jury Commissioners Paul Kijowski and Karen Schreckengost, Register and Recorder Marianne Hileman, Prothonotary and Clerk of Courts Brenda George, Treasurer Amanda Hiles and the three county commissioners.

“I think that’s fair to the taxpayer and I think that’s fair to future Board of Commissioners,” Fink said. “I think it would be very unfair if we sat here and named a percentage they should get when we don’t know what those budget years look like.

“If they (got) one percent, two percent, three percent, that’s what elected officials got. (But) if there’s no money in the budget for any type of wage increase for the at-will employees, elected officials get nothing.”

Most of the County employees are non-bargaining unit employees.

As Commissioner Fink explained, commissioners are mandated by code to set salaries for four years following their term – in this case, for 2016 through 2019.

“The legislation in place is to keep decisions of salary out of the current Boards hand – that eliminates any partiality,” County Clerk George Skamai said.

The motion by Commissioner Fink was unanimously approved by all three county commissioners.
It was the first year Commissioner Chair David Battaglia has dealt with the possibility – which is decided via a public hearing every four years (always a year before a county election).

“We always set aside a pool in our budget for potential increases, but even though that’s set aside, there’s no guarantee that’s going to happen,” Battaglia said.

As Battaglia read from the statute, no new salary schedule is to be adopted in a calendar year in which the county commissioners are up for election, and any salary increase shall be on a percentage basis and applied equally to all county officials except in certain circumstances with elected jury commissioners.
The salaries for District Attorney Scott Andreassi and judges are set by separate legislation

The hearing – attended by Myers, Hileman, George and Hiles – is a precursor to a proclamation that might be refined in the next week.

Myers- who took office in January –asked for equality across all positions - to which Commissioner and former Coroner Bob Bower agreed. Employees received a three-percent increase in 2013.

“Three percent on their salary is a lot more than three percent on my salary,” Myers said. “I’m not asking for a raise – I just don’t want it to get farther apart.”

Battaglia asked Myers to compare his duties, personnel and equipment with other Class 6 counties and possibly bring up the issue to future commissioners or at the Salary Board meeting in January. Battaglia said commissioners have had many conversations with how to handle the salaries and how they affect pension costs

“As long as we continue to use the percentile, that constant gap will always grow larger,” Bower said.

A formal resolution will be voted on at the November 6 public meeting.

Commissioners across the state are working through the same salary process, as reminded by the County Commissioners Association of Pennsylvania

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  By sickofpayingforit, October 30, 2014 @ 9:40 AM

  I can agree with what is said in this article and actually support the theme. Council has to work the budget over to get a raise. Incentive to manage the budget. This is a positive. Sure there will be no budgetary issues that are supported by 100% of the tax-payers, this is a given, but if the net result is the greater good is serviced, and they can save tax money, then take a raise, they did their job and earned it. Where we need to tighten up is if the budget goes the other way and more tax revenue is needed……..
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  By scott_starr, October 30, 2014 @ 9:41 PM

  To those “elected officials” who don’t like their salary…. Don’t run for office.
  It’s that simple.

  You know the salary when you run ( by using other people’s money), if it is not enough for you, then go into the private sector where you may actually have to produce something.

  Many of these positions should be contracted out anyway.
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  By jorn jensen, October 31, 2014 @ 8:46 PM

  ….and public officials face a pay cut rather than increasing taxes. Imagine that - a pay cut, like the private sector experiences when times aren’t going so well. Imagine the catastrophe if the private sector operated like the public sector - instead of merely raising taxes, they’d merely raise prices to cover shortfalls and everyone would run to brand X and brand A would fold up and close on their higher prices. More people on unemployment.

  Scott Starr, you have it correct - don’t like the pay, don’t run for that office.

  Garbage collection in Kittanning - Kittanning has no business, whatsoever, being in the garbage collection business. Contract it out and eliminate a great deal of that tax load.
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  By blutoblutarsky, November 3, 2014 @ 12:28 PM

  What about when brand X buys brand A and keeps the prices the same or raises them?

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