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Thomson wants Solano supervisors to discuss salary, benefits cuts
FAIRFIELD — Solano County supervisors will apparently once again discuss whether they should reduce their salaries and benefits.
Supervisor Skip Thomson at the end of Tuesday’s meeting asked that the item be on the agenda for a future meeting. The board announced no date.
County supervisors make a base pay of $95,123 annually and get an auto allowance of more than $10,000 annually. Some supervisors who have been in office long enough make longevity pay of several thousand dollars annually. The Board of Supervisors doesn’t vote on salary increases, but has its salary tied to a percentage of California superior court judge salaries.
Thomson said he understands from county counsel that it would take a 5-0 vote of the board to reduce supervisor salaries.
“I’ll tell you right now I’m not going to support it, so maybe there’s no need to take it further,” Supervisor Jim Spering said.
Thomson said he wants to take the issue further anyway.
“Jim, I ran a campaign on this very issue and I’d like to have the public weigh in,” said Thomson, who was elected in June 2012 and took office in January.
Thomson proposed no specific amount to cut salaries. He previously said that supervisors should lead and cut their own salaries and benefits before asking employees to take further cuts to help balance the budget.
The Board of Supervisors in June 2011 discussed cutting supervisor salaries by 10 percent. It fell short of the unanimous vote needed to make the cut a reality, with Supervisor Linda Seifert and then-Supervisors Barbara Kondylis and Mike Reagan voting yes and Jim Spering and Supervisor John Vasquez voting no.
Instead, supervisors decided to voluntarily cut 10 percent from the budget they receive for their individual district departments. For example, Seifert, Reagan and Vasquez cut their auto allowances and Spering cut his travel budget.
Reach Barry Eberling at 427-6929 or beberling@dailyrepublic.net. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/beberlingdr.
Barry Eberling
Discussion | 5 comments
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George Guynn, JrFebruary 20, 2013 - 4:40 am
Supervisor Thomson cut his auto allowance to zero and Chair Seifert still gets $6,000 and change. Vasquez and the others are at $10,400 a year per a recent Public Information Act Request. The 5 to 0 vote needs to be changed and both the auto allowance and longevity pay need to go bye bye! Thanks Supervisor Thomson for your efforts in this matter. Hope the public shows up at future meetings to demand this waste stop.
Reply |PatriotFebruary 20, 2013 - 5:23 am
But they all work so hard for all of us..Oh, what have they done lately??
Reply |SteveFebruary 20, 2013 - 8:30 am
Supervisor Thomson receives a six figure pension from his past time as a Supervisor and Assessor. So his salary as a Board member is not as important as someone who works full time at the position. He has not volunteered to cut his pension. Board salaries are chump change in relation to the County budget, the amount of people served, and the size of an organization that serves 400,000 people. While other cities and counties have had to resort to tax increases, bankruptcy, and slashing services, Solano County weathered the recession quite well. That did not happen on its own. This is political grandstanding and pandering to labor unions who got Thomson elected. Nothing more.
Reply |George Guynn, JrFebruary 20, 2013 - 12:41 pm
Steve, I agree that pensions need to be cut, but that is a separate subject. The point is that the sups need a pay cut just like everyone else. Strange that 55% vote is okay to pay more taxes, but it has to be 100% vote to keep overpaid sups in money!!!! Thanks Supervisor Thomson for keeping your word on going after auto pay and longevity pay.
Reply |Hot Rod BobFebruary 21, 2013 - 7:33 am
George is right on! Thanks Sup. Thompson! Now lets get the public behind this effort. If the general public gets involved in this discussion, other supervisors will have to listen to Skip and then do something about it. How ridiculous is longevity pay anyway? Would love to see Sup. Spearing's answer to this one! -HRB
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