BETHEL, Alaska (AP) - An Alaska city council has introduced a measure to begin paying council members.
The Bethel City Council discussed a proposal to pay its members $100 for every regular council meeting, $25 for each special city council meeting and water and sewer subsidies up to several hundred dollars a month, KYUK-AM reported Thursday.
The council in western Alaska will vote on the ordinance May 14 and a public vote will be held before it takes effect, although the council can pass an “advisory vote” overriding the public vote.
The pay proposal is comparable to other small Alaska communities where city councilors are paid, said council member Fritz Charles, who introduced the ordinance.
“I asked every one of those other people from surrounding villages up north, Kotzebue, Nome, Barrow, they all said they all got paid,” Charles said.
Paying council members may entice others to serve in the future when they otherwise might not, said council member Carole Jung-Jordan.
“We do spend a lot of time away from our families and it would just be nice, just a little something,” Jung-Jordan said.
Council member Leif Albertson opposed instituting council pay, while member Perry Barr said the proposed amount is too high.
Bethel Vice-Mayor Raymone Williams suggested leaving the decision to residents.
“Give this back to the people to vote on,” Williams said. “Let them decide yay or nay so that they can have their voice heard as our employers.”
___
Information from: KYUK-AM, http://www.kyuk.org
Please read our comment policy before commenting.