Time to increase Poway City Council salaries?

Is is time for Poway’s mayor and four City Council members to receive pay raises?

That question will be posed to the elected body at Tuesday’s night’s regular council meeting.

City staff isn’t making any recommendations, but a prepared report notes that it’s been seven years since the salaries have been raised.

By state law, the pay given the mayor and councilmembers can increase by no more than 5 percent a year. The law also states that any raises approved would not go into effect until following the November 2016 municipal elections.

The mayor makes $1,667 per month, plus a $300 car allowance. Councilmembers make $1,467 per month, plus that same car allowance.

Poway historically tries to keep employee salaries at or near the 67th percentile when compared to similar positions in the region. The mayor’s salary is about $200 below that percentile while council salaries are just a little above, according to a report prepared by City Manager Dan Singer.

Singer notes in his report that theoretically, the council could raise salaries by as much as 40 percent, taking into consideration the years when they could have been increased, but were not.

Another option, Singer said, might be to raise the salaries the same 14.5 percent received by city employees since 2008.

Or, the council might do what it did in 2008 — approve a modest increase but suspend its implementation until later. In 2008 the raised were put on hold for two years.

Another option would be to decline to raise the pay of the city’s elected leaders.

The council meeting Tuesday night will start at 7 o’clock. It is televised live on cable television and is streamed online through the city’s website: www.poway.org.