PORT ANGELES — Clallam County’s non-judicial elected officials are looking to restructure their positions’ salaries to be based on a percentage of what a Superior Court judge earns.
In recent weeks, elected officials have discussed what is a fair salary for their positions to help Clallam County remain competitive with other jurisdictions and how to take politics out of salary decisions.
“I like the idea of minimizing our ability to muck it up and to provide some predictably and consistency,” Commissioner Mark Ozias said during a work session April 2.
Clallam County Administrator Jim Jones said Wednesday he is preparing to present three options to the elected officials during a special 9 a.m. work session Tuesday.
Jones said he is trying not to influence the officials’ decision and that his options are not recommendations. He said the commissioners may mix and match or do something different.
He said he believes the Board of County of Commissioners will approve a resolution during its April 24 meeting.
The options are each set as a percentage of a Superior Court judge’s salary, an amount set by Washington Citizen’s Commission on Salaries for Elected Officials. Superior Court judges will be paid $172,571 annually, effective Sept. 1.
One of the options has the assessor, auditor, commissioners, director of the Department of Community Development and treasurer each earning 50 percent of a Superior Court judge’s salary, or $86,285 annually.
That option also has the sheriff earning 70 percent of a Superior Court judge, or $120,800 annually.
The Prosecuting Attorney would earn 87 percent of a Superior Court judge’s salary, or $150,137 annually.
The other two options would have percentages plus and minus 2 percent from the first option for each of the positions.
Each of the options would represent a raise for all of the positions.
At 50 percent, the commissioners’ salary would increase from $6,306 per month to $7,190 per month. Commissioners in other similar-sized counties earned an average of $6,834 per month, according to Jones’ calculations.
Commissioner Mark Ozias during Monday’s work session questioned whether the director of the Department of Community Development should be paid more than 50 percent.
He suggested a number closer to 60 percent.
Winborn, the only elected DCD director in the nation, said part of being elected is “you’re providing service to your community; that’s why you do it.”
The new salaries would not be effective until each of the positions has gone through an election. Most new salaries would be effective Jan. 1, 2019, though two of the commissioners’ salaries would not change until Jan. 1, 2020, and Jan. 1, 2021.
Jones said elected officials’ salaries are currently on a sliding scale based on the number of years they have served.
“If someone brand new comes in, they get paid less,” he said. “That was deemed to be unfair and we found out we were the only county in the state doing it that way.”
Jones said the new salary schedule also would address a provision in county code that has prevented the prosecuting attorney from having a cost of living adjustment on half of the position’s salary.
Half of the prosecuting attorney’s salary is based on a Superior Court judge’s salary and the other half is half of what the prosecuting attorney was paid in 2007.
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Reporter Jesse Major can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 56250, or at jmajor@peninsuladailynews.com.
