Campton Hills sets salaries of leaders

Holding the offices of Campton Hills village president and village clerk next year will pay a bit more than they do now, but serving as a trustee won't pay as much.

The village board late Tuesday approved a new salary schedule for elected officials, carving out a $4,000 raise for the president, a $1,000 raise for the clerk and $250 cuts for trustees.

The salaries take effect when the village's first elected officials are seated May 1. The existing six trustees, clerk and president were appointed after the village incorporated last spring and are serving on a temporary basis.

Trustees debated the issue for more than an hour Tuesday before settling on a $37,500 package, which is $5,500, or 17 percent, more than the current structure.

Despite initial reservations about increasing the total package beyond what originally was projected, the board ended up voting 5-0 for the new salary schedule. Trustee Roy Pollack was absent.

"I think it's fair," Village President Patsy Smith said Wednesday, adding that the new salaries are "in the same ballpark" as those in Geneva, Lily Lake, St. Charles and Campton Township. "It just took a little while to get everybody on the same page."

The new structure bumps the president's annual salary from $12,000 to $17,000, and adds $1,000 for filling the duties of liquor commissioner. The clerk's pay increased from $5,000 to $6,000, and trustees' went down, from $2,500 to $2,250. Smith said only Village Clerk Rebecca Lambe currently opts to draw pay; the others are volunteering their time.

Smith says the raises for clerk and president were warranted, particularly now, while the village is without a full administrative staff to handle the workload.

Several trustees said they wouldn't mind cutting the pay for their current positions if it means better compensation for the president and clerk without a substantial budget increase. Trustee Jim Kopec likened any pay involved with elected office to a "gift" for public servants.

"You can't live on it; you can't do much with it other than maybe take your family out once in a while," he said.

The salaries are set for the entire terms of the first elected officials and include an annual 3 percent, cost-of-living increase.

When asked, several trustees said they plan to run for election, which means the new salaries could potentially become their own.