Glen Ellyn village president to get pay bump?
Some Glen Ellyn trustees say whoever serves as the next village president should get more money for doing the job, based on the example set by the person currently in the position.
At a village board meeting Monday, trustee Carl Henninger proposed increasing compensation for the village’s top elected official, suggesting the current $600 annual salary could be increased to as much as $5,000. He says it would incentivize future village presidents to take on the same type of role as the current president, Mark Pfefferman.
The proposed pay raise wouldn’t affect Pfefferman, whose term ends in May 2013 and who has said he isn’t seeking a second term. Nor would it affect Henninger, who said Monday he’s decided not to run for village president due to the large time commitment.
“That would become the de facto standard — the acknowledgment you are doing things during the week that’s going to interfere with your 9 to 5 job,” Henninger said. “I think the president’s job should just have a small reward for all the time that’s put in.”
By comparison, village trustees receive $250 a year, but Henninger argued that the time dedicated in the village president role “is so much more than what (trustees) do.”
Glen Ellyn, like most communities in the area, has a council-manager form of government, in which the elected village president and trustees appoint a village manager, who oversees day-to-day operations of village government. But most trustees said Pfefferman, elected in 2009, has expanded the role of village president by making more public appearances and handling village business during the week.
Pfefferman himself said he was initially opposed to the concept of a pay increase, but he later changed his position after adding up his own costs. For example, he said he often pays for lunches since not doing so would violate the village ethics ordinance.
Pfefferman’s expenses related to his role as village president, he said, have come out to about $5,000 a year.
“What’s our goal? If it’s to compensate for time, we might not get there, but if it’s to incent, we might,” Pfefferman said.
In addition to Henninger, trustees Pete Ladesic and Phil Hartweg favored an increase in compensation.
Trustee Diane McGinley said she wouldn’t be opposed to giving a stipend for attending events, but she is opposed to increasing overall compensation at a time when there’s a “lean (village) staff where every dollar counts.”
Trustee Peter Cooper suggested polling former village presidents about what they believe the salary should be.
Village Attorney Stewart Diamond said should the village board decide to increase compensation, it would legally have to act by November — six months before the next village president’s term begins in May.