Former South Pittsburg Mayor Mike Killian
SOUTH PITTSBURG, Tenn. -- City officials here have approved pay raises for city commissioners and the mayor after the Nov. 6 elections.
South Pittsburg commissioners at their May meeting voted unanimously to approve Ordinance 730 on final reading. It's the first pay raise for them since 1990, Mayor Mike Killian said.
The ordinance changes the city's municipal code dealing with the compensation schedule for city commissioners and the mayor, officials said.
The mayor's pay will go from $400 to $600 per month. Commissioners' pay will double, from $200 to $400 per month.
Killian said the board's move is in anticipation of having at least two new members after the election.
Killian and long-time Commissioner Charles Reynolds have announced they will not seek re-election.
Commissioner Gene King, who made the motion to raise the pay scale in April, will seek re-election in the fall.
City leaders were in a bit of a time crunch when the pay hike was proposed in April because of City Charter requirements.
"The charter says that this has to be done six months before a new group takes office," Killian said. "So it won't happen until after the November elections."
The board's votes on first and second reading last month were unanimous.
Killian said he hopes the increases will encourage more residents to seek those offices in the future.