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County Supervisor Raise Discourse Not Over

Supervisor James Goldstein (D,C,I – Lebanon) Expected to Bring new Resolutions Tomorrow

By Martha E. Conway

(Wampsville – Nov. 9, 2009) – Members of the Madison County Finance, Ways and Means Committee met before the full Madison County Board of Supervisors Annual Session Day One meeting to discuss a resolution outlining proposed raises for members of the board.

That resolution – proposing $7,223 worth of raises for the sitting supervisors – passed committee and the full Board of Supervisors, but the matter may not be over yet.

The resolution recommended a raise for the board chairman from $25,385 to $26,000, for the deputy chairman from $18,192 to $18,558 and for the remaining 17 supervisors to share an increase of $6,222.

Supervisors John A. Reinhardt (R,C,I – Oneida Wards 1-3), Russell Cary (R – Fenner), Richard O. Bargabos (R – Smithfield), and Priscilla Suits (R – Eaton) attended the meeting. Supervisor John Salka (R,C,I – Brookfield) was absent, chairing a Social and Mental Health Committee meeting held simultaneously that day.

Bargabos said the resolution was developed to bring the subject of raises to the full committee while accommodating Supervisor James Goldstein’s (D,C,I – Lebanon) annual requests to remove the item from the budget and put it up for a separate vote.

“I don’t think anyone should get a cost of living raise when there was no raise in the [Consumer Price Index],” Cary said. “There was no raise in Social Security.”

Cary said he realizes that job is not volunteer work, but that the salary should stay at the rate at which supervisors took the job. He said he would support the resolution if it were modified to pay the increased stipends to the chairman and deputy chairman, but leave the 3-percent across-the-board increases out.

The committee voted to move the resolution forward for consideration by the full board.

On the Floor

Goldstein asked for the rationale supporting some supervisors’ decision to vote in favor of raises for themselves at a time when people are hurting.

“Why was this brought back when a 0-percent increase was planned?” Goldstein asked.

Supervisor Rocco J. “Rocky” DiVeronica said he agreed with Goldstein’s dissent and added that he and his town board have not taken an increase in the past three or four years.

“[The $366 raise] is not going to impact my livelihood, but it may somebody else’s,” DiVeronica said.

Supervisor Scott Henderson (R – Oneida Wards 1-3) said he didn’t think it appropriate to vote in favor of any raise.

“If you want to get on your soapbox, let’s do away with travel,” said Madison County Board of Supervisors Chairman John M. Becker (R,C,I – Sullivan).

DiVeronica said he wasn’t on a soapbox and the minimal amount of money discussed wouldn’t benefit even the supervisors.

“If you really want to save the county money, let’s save some money,” Becker said, citing $350,000 in a raise and benefit package awarded recently in union negotiations, health care coverage, travel and other expenses.

“When you were chairman, the sheriff’s office budget doubled,” Becker told DiVeronica.

DiVeronica chaired the Board of Supervisors for the eight years preceding Becker’s administration.

Supervisor Darrin P. Ball (R,C,I – Lincoln) said he commended Reinhardt for putting forth the resolution.

“In the past, we came under fire because we didn’t vote on this separately,” Ball said. “Now, we are all aware of what is going on. We approved a considerable contract earlier this year, and there’s been a significant increase in [the employee performance incentive program].”

Bargabos said he agreed with Ball.

“We agreed to serve the public, but it shouldn’t come with a sacrifice,” Bargabos said. “Jim, Scott and Rocky are trying to say their not voting for this is symbolic…impact on the budget…save the taxpayers money.”

Supporting the resolution was meaningful, Bargabos said.

Suits said the slight raise could mean bigger savings, as it may be the difference of whether a supervisor submits claims for reimbursement of mileage, something she said is substantial for supervisors traveling even further south of her.

“And that may amount to more than 3 percent,” Suits said.

Cary repeated the concerns he voice in committee.

Supervisor Elizabeth Moran (D – Cazenovia) said though she was stepping away from the job, the board should keep pace with salaries for the supervisors.

“It is getting increasingly difficult to find people to carve out time from their personal and professional lives to serve,” Moran said.

She said the low salaries would only create a bigger barrier and degrade the ability to recruit and retain strong leadership for the county.

“Supervisors generally spend more time here than those in the past,” Reinhardt said. “Whether it’s being here, being on the telephone or taking work home with you.”

Supervisor Lewis Carinci (D – Oneida Wards 4-6) said he actually loses money from his full-time job because of the demands of his government position.

“But I love this,” Carinci said. “If anyone has a problem with the raise, they can donate it.”

“If we cannot say ‘no’ to ourselves now, how do we say ‘no’ to others when we have to?” Goldstein asked. “Unemployment in this county is at 10.2 percent. We are eligible for $14,000 worth of free health insurance annually. If we are going to be straightforward, we’ve voted for many raises, but I think the EPI should be suspended until the economy turns around. We have to tell others to hold the line in the weeks and months ahead.”

DiVeronica told Becker the workload was the same before he became chair.

“We’ve been through hard times before,” DiVeronica said. “Yes, it’s symbolic. We need to send a message.”

Becker brought the gavel down on DiVeronica; Supervisor Dan Degear (R – DeRuyter) called the question.

The vote was 938 to 562 in favor of the raises with supervisors Salka, Moran, Degear, Suits, Ball, Ron Bono (R – Madison), Bargabos, Becker, Reinhardt, James Rafte Sr. (Oneida Wards 4-6), and Carinci voting for and Cary, Russell Hammond (R – Georgetown), Walt Jaquay (R – Hamilton), Goldstein, DiVeronica, Richard Williams (D – Nelson), Alexander Stepanski (R – Stockbridge) and Henderson voting against.

But it’s Not Over

Goldstein has prepared two resolutions he plans to present tomorrow, Tuesday, Nov. 17. The first would require “…that all elected officials and county management employees shall pay 10 percent of the cost of their health insurance premiums through payroll deduction in order to demonstrate a shared sacrifice to the county taxpayers, reduce county expenditure and also encouraging other municipal employees and officials to join in this effort in 2010.”

The second resolution reinstates the supervisor salaries to the levels that pre-dated the vote last week.

Nov. 17 marks the second day of annual session, a period of the year when the rules of the board are suspended in regard to the submission of resolutions. Any supervisor may bring any resolution on any subject to the full board without navigating the committee process.

Does Goldstein think he will get a second on either of his motions during this ‘anything-goes’ season?

“I don’t know,” Goldstein said. “We’ll just have to wait and see.”

The day begins with Finance, Ways and Means at 8 a.m.

Martha E. Conway is Managing Editor for the Madison County Courier. She can be reached at 315.813.0124 or by emailing Martha@m3ppublications.com. Follow her on Twitter at http://twitter.com/marthaeconway or become a friend on Facebook at http://facebook.com/meconway.

5 Comments on "County Supervisor Raise Discourse Not Over"

Charlie Naef on Tue, 17th Nov 2009 12:05 pm

The amount saved by gearing salary increases for supervisors to the CPI, now at zero, may be a symbolic gesture of shared sacrifice, but that does not diminish its importance.

Having voted themselves a 3% salary increase in these tough economic times with rising levels of unemployment and underemployment, the supervisors ought to redeem themselves by supporting supervisor Jim Goldstein’s resolution requiring supervisors and management level employees to make a modest 10% contribution to the premiums for the free health insurance they have taken for granted all these years. Together with a vote for Goldstein’s second resolution that would rescind their salary increases, this would be more than just a symbolic gesture of shared sacrifice. It would amount to real cost savings.

I support chairman John Becker’s leadership in moving county government in a new direction. His position on this issue that has caught the public’s attention will be a significant test of his leadership skills.

Honna Bowen on Tue, 17th Nov 2009 11:28 pm

Becker and his supporters are nickel & diming this county. Their FREE health care benefits and salaries are more than most FULL TIME residents receive. Their insensitivity to the plight of their constituents is evident, and typical of today’s governing officials.

Jim Goldstein on Thu, 19th Nov 2009 8:53 pm

The proposal I made that was to forego raise for supervisors and to also hold the Deputy Board Chairman to the 2009 level which would have saved about $13,000. My proposal to require all county supervisors and management staff to cost share 10 percent of their insurance is estimated to save about $100,000. The decision by the board to vote itself a raise after misrepresenting this in the tentative and preliminary budget documents was dishonest and unethical and not necessary. Last year, we had an open process of dialgoue, debate and a vote late in annual session after the public hearings and review of the budget in more detail. My idea of a shared sacrifice by supervisors to set the tone for the next round of salary negotiations and other spending cuts that will have to come was rejected by a close vote and then prevented from being reconsidered due to the rules during annual session. I think $113,000 is a good start even if it does not seem like much in a local tax levy of $28.7 million and since we added another part-time position for the ag specialist at $19,000, we could have saved half of that — I would remind people that the vote of a few supervisors was the difference so not everyone thought the raise was appropriate.

jay cowan on Fri, 4th Dec 2009 7:29 am

You have asked everyone else to cut
their budgets and to hold the line
Shame on you for not doing the same
To be self serving like some of you
is a slap in the face to the people you
represent.

David L. Sadler on Sat, 5th Dec 2009 12:26 pm

Why does Oneida have four supervisors
while all the towns have one?

Oneida has a mayor, the supervisors of
Oneida have no executive power like those of the towns. As far as I know
Oneida is the only city in the state
to have county supervisors.

The Town of Sullivan with the largest
population of any municipality in the
county has only one supervisor.

Eliminate the Oneida supervisors as
they are not needed as the Town of
Oneida ceased to exist April 21,1896.

County Supervisor Raise Discourse Not Over

Supervisor James Goldstein (D,C,I – Lebanon) Expected to Bring new Resolutions Tomorrow

On the Floor

But it’s Not Over

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