STRUTHERS Council approves raises for some officials

The mayor hasn't had a pay increase since 2000.
By PETER H. MILLIKEN
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
STRUTHERS -- Pay raises of 10 percent for the mayor, 11 percent for the treasurer and 3 percent for the law director will take effect Jan. 1.
City council approved increases for the elected officials Monday evening by a 5-2 vote, with Councilmen Daniel R. Yemma, D-3rd, and Terry P. Stocker, D-4th, dissenting.
Under the ordinance, Mayor Dan Mamula's annual salary will rise from $34,500 to $37,950 on Jan. 1, 2004; $39,089 on Jan. 1, 2005; $40,261 on Jan. 1, 2006; and $41,468 on Jan. 1, 2007.
The ordinance also raises the annual pay of the city law director from $30,182 to $31,087, effective Jan. 1, 2004; $32,020 on Jan. 1, 2005; $32,981 on Jan. 1, 2006; and $33,970 on Jan. 1, 2007. The city treasurer will go from $9,000 to $10,000 a year, effective Jan. 1, 2004.
Some are the same
Other elected officials' annual salaries will stay the same: $47,380 for the auditor; $8,400 for the council president and $8,500 for council members.
Robert D. Carcelli, city council president-elect, and Yemma said the 10-percent pay increase for the mayor would cause the city difficulty in negotiations with city workers. "That 10 percent is going to come back and haunt us," Carcelli said.
But Dexter A. Hollen, D-at large, finance and legislation committee chairman, said the mayor hadn't had a raise since 2000, and Councilman Bert R. Cene, D-2nd, said this raise is about the same as the mayor got in 2000. Cene said Mamula's raise "appears to be fair and equitable and fiscally responsible."
Council also voted to abolish its committee on adjustment and claims, which has been handling flood and other claims against the city, and to establish a community development committee, which will focus on economic and community development issues.
Councilman Anthony Protopapa, D-1st, a member of the committee on adjustment and claims, said that committee met only three or four times a year, and that its members lacked the expertise to evaluate some of the claims. The new committee will focus on economic development, which is a major priority, he said.
Handling claims
From now on, claims, such as the pending $500 sewer backup damage claim from John R. Vass of Brandon Avenue, will likely be handled by the city's insurance company, Protopapa said.
Stocker, adjustment and claims committee chairman, cast the only vote against abolition of the committee, saying resolution of claims will be more costly and less convenient for residents if they have to file small claims in municipal court.
Mamula announced that the city has received $37,000 from the Federal Emergency Management Agency and will receive another $10,000 from state disaster officials, with the combined total fully reimbursing the city for its sewer repair and overtime expenses from last summer's heavy rains and flooding.