DuPage Co. cuts board pay, ups other wages

While the DuPage County Board approved pay cuts for six seats on the board Tuesday, they approved raises for five countywide offices.

The pay cuts come two years after salaries for the other 12 seats on the board were reduced as well. The cuts amount to a 6.65 percent decrease from $51,581 a year to $50,079.

"As elected officials, we must lead by example," said board member JR McBride. "Today's vote is a demonstration of our commitment to providing the best services at the lowest cost."

Meanwhile, raises for the board chairman, sheriff, treasurer, clerk and regional superintendent of schools were approved. Those raises amount to a 6 percent increase over four years.

All the salary changes take effect after the November election. None of the countywide offices will receive a pay hike in the next fiscal year that begins in December. But the sheriff, clerk and treasurer will receive a 3 percent increase the following year, while the regional superintendent will receive a 2 percent raise.

The same offices receive a similar increase in the third year as well. But in the fourth year only the superintendent receives a 2 percent raise.

The board also approved a salary schedule for the chairman that calls for no raises over the next two fiscal years, but 2 percent hikes beginning in December 2013 and another in December 2014. Those raises will increase the position's pay from $121,540 a year to $126,450.

Non-union county employees received no raises this year and some board members were concerned about setting salary hikes for elected officials with the possibility employees could go another year without raises.

"We're not sure what we're going to be giving our employees," board member Jim Healy said. "When you're spreading the pain like this, I'm hesitant to approve raises without knowing where we're going to be."

The chairman's salary freeze for two years was supported by state Sen. Dan Cronin, who is also the Republican nominee for the post. Cronin will square off against Democrat Carole Cheney in November. Cronin wrote a letter to the board suggesting the salary should be frozen for two years instead of just the first year as originally called for.

A Cheney campaign spokesman said Cronin's lobbying for any raises was in "bad taste."

"Until we start to see an increase in jobs and an increase in pay for the taxpayers of DuPage, Carole Cheney commits to not accept an increase of taxpayer funds into her own pocketbook," Ryne Bex said.