OPELOUSAS, La. (AP) - The Opelousas Board of Aldermen has voted to again have its Budget Committee take up a proposal by Mayor Donald Cravins Sr. to reduce the salaries of the aldermen and mayor.
But this time Cravins put numbers to the proposal: cutting the mayor’s salary by $11,022 a year and the aldermen’s salary and vehicle stipend by $2,869 a year.
Cravins stressed during the past several months that in his opinion both the mayor and aldermen earn too much for a city the size of Opelousas.
The Advocate reports (https://bit.ly/1qvwmzW ) the salary reduction issue has been placed on the meeting agenda every month since October. But the aldermen have either refused to discuss the issue at a regular meeting or sent it back to the Budget Committee for consideration.
According to Aldermen Reggie Tatum, the mayor earns $72,000 a year, while the aldermen each receive $21,000 a year, which includes the monthly vehicle stipend.
Tatum said the difference on Tuesday is that Cravins presented the aldermen with a specific proposal.
The amounts proposed by Cravins were not discussed at the meeting, but Tatum said they include a base annual mayor’s salary of $60,978 and $13,931 for each of the aldermen. In addition, the aldermen would still get the monthly $350 vehicle allowance they currently receive.
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Information from: The Advocate, https://theadvocate.com
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