FILE PHOTO — From left to right, county commissioners Gary Stamper, Edna Fund, and Bobby Jackson attend a mayors meeting Jan. 3, 2020, at the Lewis County Courthouse in Chehalis.
The Lewis County Board of Commissioners is facing criticism from all sides this week after the Lewis County Salary Commission announced its decision to give the commissioners 10 percent raises, and to recommend the same raise for all other elected county positions.
The commissioners must, under state law, accept the raises and have all pledged to give the money away to nonprofits or other causes, but after several lengthy discussions this week have not made a decision on whether to approve raises for other elected officials.
After a more-than-45-minute discussion at a Thursday afternoon meeting, the commission decided to table the topic for more discussion next week.
Lewis County Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer strongly criticised the board for its inability to make a decision.
“It sounds like the commissioners trust themselves to spend the other 10 percent, but they don’t trust the other elected officials to spend the extra 10 percent in the community,” Meyer said. “The board put themselves in this position, and when the answer came back different than what they wanted, the board is balking.”
He and other elected officials on Thursday criticized the timing of the debate.
“It seems somewhat convenient that we are now doing this in the middle of an election cycle,” he said.
The BOCC empaneled this salary commission in 2018, although it didn’t meet for the first time until February of this year.
“Money’s tight, I get that, and it is not the ideal time,” Meyer said. “A year and a half ago probably would have been the better time.”
Treasurer Arny Davis objected to calling the increases a “raise,” and said it was more like a cost of living adjustment.
“I think the process should be changed in the future,” he said. “I think this ends up being a little bit of a political decision rather than a doing the right thing decision.”
County Clerk Scott Tinney said it would be “unconscionable” for the commission to not give the other electeds raises despite the salary commission’s recommendation.
“This decision was made in the midst of the COVID, they had all of the current … financial information available,” he said. “They made a very conscientious decision … to recommend that.”
Assessor Diane Dorey has also spoken out in favor of raises for elected officials.
Coroner Warren McLeod has adamantly said he does not want a raise.
“As the elected Coroner I do not want any type of raise when I can only have my deputy coroners be considered ‘casual help’ by the county,” he wrote in a Facebook post. “This means that they obtain the national certification, conduct in depth investigations and work nights, weekends and holidays and all for a whopping $15 per hour and no benefits.”
The Chronicle has received dozens of comments through social media, Chronline.com or letters to the editor regarding the salary increase from area residents, nearly all opposed to raises for elected officials.
“Also in these times of people out of work and the pandemic it is criminal for elected officials to get a pay raise,” McLeod wrote, saying he has been telling other elected officials of his position and was not notified of salary commission meetings.
The meetings were open to the public and on the county commissioners’ calendar.
“People are having trouble paying for rent, cannot go to work, suicides and drug overdoses are up and there is a move to raise the pay for elected officials?” McLeod wrote.
Commissioner Gary Stamper reiterated his position Thursday that if the commissioners get raises the other elected officials should too.
Commissioners Edna Fund and Bobby Jackson both expressed frustration with the situation.
“Those of us who run for elected office, we should know what the salaries are,” Fund said. “I’m very, very conservative in fiscal issues for myself and it’s difficult for me to be talking about raises for people when I know Rose’s Furniture is closing, (Fairway Lanes) is closing, businesses out there are suffering with COVID - 19 and for us to be in here talking about raises … ,” she said.
Under state law, county commissioners can either vote as a body to raise the commissioners’ salaries, but in that scenario, must set the raise to take effect after their current terms are over. Commissioners can’t raise or decrease their own salaries mid-term. The second option is to create a salary commission of citizens to consider raises.
A mechanism does exist in state law to challenge the decision of the salary commission.
“If a salary commission is created, the elected officials are paid the salaries established by the commission, although the salaries are subject to referendum,” according to the Municipal Research and Service Center. “If no referendum is filed within 30 days, the new salaries can be effective immediately, except if the commission determines a salary should be decreased, since no decrease is allowed during a term.”
The Lewis County Prosecutor’s Office recommended earlier that the commissioners accept the raises, and simply donate the money if they want to.
The salary commission only filed its official decision last Friday, meaning a citizen still has about three weeks to gather signatures for a referendum.
According to the state Employment Security Department, Lewis County’s average annual wage in 2018 was $43,142. The median household income was $61,000. As of June, Lewis County’s unemployment rate is 10.3 percent.
Lewis County Elected Officials’ Salaries
• County Commissioners — $82,000 each
• Sheriff Rob Snaza — $111,000
• Assessor Diane Dorey — $75,000
• Auditor Larry Grove — $75,000
• Treasurer Arny Davis — $75,000
• Coroner Warren McLeod — $75,000
• Clerk Scott Tinney — $75,000
• Prosecutor Jonathan Meyer —$144,000*
* Meyer’s salary is calculated differently than the other elected officials. Washington state reimburses the county at a rate of half of a Superior Court judge’s salary to go toward Meyer’s position. According to Meyer, the county is supposed to match the state’s payment.
