Panel Urges Doubling Pay of Anaheim City Council

The Anaheim City Council on Tuesday began considering changes to the City Charter, including a repeal of term limits for mayor and city council, and raising their wages--a move that would make those elected officials the best paid in Orange County.

The proposal would raise the monthly base salary of the mayor to $2,500 and council members to $2,000. These officials, who last got a raise in 1989, are paid $1,000 a month, plus additional stipends for city council meetings.

Only elected officials in Newport Beach and Huntington Beach are paid more. Newport Beach’s mayor is gets $1,245 a month. In Huntington Beach, the mayor receives $1,674 a month, while council members get $1,244.

Present Salaries Called ‘Inadequate’

Although Anaheim offers relatively high salaries to its elected officials, City Atty. Jack White said the committee thought “the $1,000 limit was probably inadequate for a city the size of Anaheim.”

“It’s a very intensive part-time job,” Councilwoman Lucille Kring said Tuesday. “I think $2,000 is appropriate.”

However, Councilman Tom Tait said serving on the council is an honor and that a pay raise is unnecessary. “I think the salaries should stay the way they are now,” he said.

The seven-member charter review committee also recommended limiting the Anaheim Firefighters Assn.’s ability to use arbitration in contract negotiations.

As the council began discussing the proposed charter changes Tuesday, members added one of their own. Mayor Tom Daly suggested deleting language allowing the city to hire a special prosecutor.

His suggestion stems from the campaign finance scandal that followed the 1996 city election. Daly, Councilwoman Shirley McCracken, Councilman Frank Feldhaus and others were accused of campaign abuses, and a special prosecutor was hired to investigate. A judge eventually ruled that the city had no right to hire a special prosecutor.

The proposal to eliminate eight-year term limits goes against a 1992 amendment approved overwhelmingly by voters. Bruce Solari, chairman of the council-appointed charter review committee, said panel members thought repeal was important to retain skilled people.

“We have confidence in voters to vote out people who aren’t doing a good job,” he said.

The committee also suggested changing a 1998 amendment giving the firefighters association “binding interest arbitration,” which allows a neutral third party to decide contract disputes. Firefighters, who have been working without a contract since 1996, first used binding arbitration several months ago, and now await a decision.

The committee said less disruptive methods would be preferred and recommended changing the charter to give only a state mediator the power to request such arbitration.

Firefighters Don’t Support Revision

Members of the firefighters group oppose the revision, saying the charter gives the association options when negotiations have stalled, said Christopher Platten, attorney for the firefighters association. To have a state mediator making decisions, Platten said, would mean that “you have state bureaucrats determining the conditions for local employees.”

The charter has undergone two rounds of major revisions since its inception in 1964, the last taking place in 1989. White said council members will continue to discuss revisions for some time, but that voters ultimately must approve any changes. Some issues are likely to appear on the Nov. 7 ballot, he added.