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Date: 11/21/2022
EASTHAMPTON – As a means of encouraging more people to seek public office, ordinance amendments were approved to allow for increases to the stipends for the Easthampton City Council and School Committee.
According to the amendments, the annual salary for the School Committee would be $4,000 per member and $4,250 for the chair. The City Council salary would be increased to $6,000 per member and $6,500 for the president. This amounts to a $2,000 increase over the previous stipends.
All increases would be effective Jan. 2, 2024. This means that those currently serving would only see the increases if they are re-elected. This is the first time this stipend has been increased since 2016.
Precinct 5 Councilor Daniel Rist said the City Charter requires that salaries and stipends be reviewed by the council in the first year of its term. These increases don’t result in a tax increase, as the money would come from the city’s budget.
“I feel that public service in a small town is key,” he said. “I never ran to make any money. If people want to help, this is the way to do it. I hope this is a start.”
Precinct 3 Councilor Thomas Peake said one concern is that he averages 10 hours a week working for the city, and given the stipend, it amounts to far less than minimum wage.
“Someone [working] paycheck to paycheck would be better working those same hours at CVS or Burger King,” he said. “I think this is a good start.”
On a related note, the council voted to maintain the current single tax rate, as the city’s commercial and industrial presence is fairly small. This was recommended by the Board of Assessors and Finance Committee.