Council Votes Down Raises for Mayor, Other Top Officials

The City Council has voted down a resolution to potentially increase the salary for the mayor and other top city elected and appointed officials.

The Council was required by the City Charter to “Act upon,” the salary level of the mayor, tax collector, city and town clerk, registrars of voters and other officials, including the Council, itself, in 2018, as the even numbered years of its term. The Council was not required to actually approve any raises.

The majority Democratic Council fulfilled its Charter requirement by voting down a resolution that would have provided for, “A 5% minimum compensation increase for the Mayor, Tax Collector, Town and City Clerk, Registrars of Voters and Corporation Counsel,” as well as potential longevity pay.

The resolution was defeated, with two Republicans voting with the nine Democrats against the resolution and four Republicans voting in favor of it.

Some Council members expressed a wish for further consideration of the question of raises for the city’s top officials. However, it was unclear whether the City Charter will be interpreted as allowing action on pay raises for the mayor and other officials in 2019, since it is not the even-numbered year of the Council’s two-year term of office.

The 2017 Plan to Increase Mayor’s Salary by 23%

The 2018 defeat of raises for the mayor and other top city officials is the second time in two years that the issue has come up and been defeated.

In 2017, the New Britain Progressive broke the news that the City Council, then with a 12 to 3 Republican majority, was considering a proposal that would have increased the mayor’s salary by 23%, up to $108,016.

That proposal would have also increased the salary of the city Tax Collector position by 11%, from $70,502 to $78,557 and the Town and City Clerk’s salary by 15%, from $68,043 to $78,557.

After  Republican Mayor Erin Stewart had openly advocated for that proposal, she later withdrew it in the face of significant public opposition.

Current Salaries of Top Elected Officials

The salary of Republican Mayor Erin Stewart is presently $87,634, which is more than twice the average household income in New Britain. The average New Britain household’s income was $43,611 in 2017.

The elected position of Tax Collector, held by Republican Cheryl Blogoslawski, has a combined salary and longevity pay of $71,017.

The elected Town and City Clerk, Republican Mark Bernacki, has a salary of $68,043.

The two Registrars of Voters, Democrat Lucian Pawlak and Republican Peter Gostin each have a salary of $54,417.