Des Moines’ mayor and City Council members are poised to vote on whether to give themselves a salary raise.
Des Moines City Council members on Monday, June 29, will consider raising the mayor’s salary to $81,375 from $70,000, a roughly 16% raise, according to council documents. Council members would see a nearly 9% increase, to $37,975 from $35,000.
An ordinance to consider the new salaries is up for a first vote at Monday’s council meeting. It would need two additional approvals to pass. The new salaries would kick in January 2028, city officials said.
City Council members in late December approved a resolution to revisit compensation changes every even-numbered year — a move city officials hoped would attract and keep more qualified elected leaders.
Votes on compensation changes have historically been irregular and avoided because of the political discomfort of officials voting on their own pay, city officials wrote in a council resolution at the time. That practice created inequities and barriers to entry, particularly for residents who would otherwise consider public service, the resolution stated.
The vote slated for Monday comes as Des Moines leaders confront a predicted $12 million budget shortfall in fiscal year 2028, and an additional $5 million gap in the 2029 budget year, which starts July 1, 2028.
Des Moines City Council members met on June 17 to kick off a series of public conversations about potential budget reductions from a variety of city departments, from police to engineering to libraries.
The item on Monday’s agenda is a procedural requirement and doesn’t necessarily mean council members support an increase in compensation, Mayor Connie Boesen said in a statement to the Des Moines Register on June 26.
“On Monday, in accordance with the new biennial compensation review schedule, City Council will discuss whether to implement a pay increase for the Mayor and Council members. Council compensation would next be considered by the city council in June, 2028,” Boesen wrote.
Des Moines City Council and mayor positions are considered part-time jobs. Council members last approved a pay hike in 2022, raising the mayor’s salary to $70,000 from $57,760, and council members’ to $35,000 from $28,880. The increase went into effect in January 2024.
They also received a $100 per-week allowance — up from $75 — to spend on expenses incurred doing city business such as cell phone bills, transportation and conferences.
Monday’s resolution maintains the $100 per-week allowance.
Virginia Barreda is the Des Moines and Polk County government reporter for the Register. She can be reached at vbarreda@dmreg.com.
This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Des Moines City Council, mayor to consider raises amid budget cuts
Reporting by Virginia Barreda, Des Moines Register / Des Moines Register
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
By Virginia Barreda, Des Moines Register | USA TODAY Network
