Some raises, some pay freezes for DuPage County officials

Salaries will be frozen for a dozen DuPage County Board members and the chairman for at least the next four years.

Meanwhile, several countywide officials will get 2 percent annual pay hikes during each of the next two years before their pay is frozen in fiscal 2021 and 2022.

The raises - and freezes - were approved Tuesday when the county board set pay scales for the sheriff, treasurer, county clerk, county board chairman and 12 county board members for the next four years. All the positions are up for election in November.

DuPage board members will continue to make $52,102. They also are eligible to receive health insurance and a pension through the county.

The board chairman is the only countywide elected official who won't get a pay raise; the position pays $131,559 a year.

As for other countywide officials, the county clerk and treasurer will have their annual salaries increase by 2 percent to $148,395 when fiscal 2019 begins on Dec. 1. Their pay will increase to $151,363 for fiscal 2020.

The sheriff will be paid $171,462 for fiscal 2019 and $174,891 for fiscal 2020.

Also on Tuesday, the county board agreed to increase the amount DuPage contributes to the annual salary for the regional superintendent of schools.

Darlene Ruscitti gets an annual salary of $113,900 from the state. The county then pays her an additional amount. Starting July 1, 2019, the amount will increase by 2 percent to $33,246. It will increase by another 2 percent to $33,911 in 2020.

During a committee meeting before the final vote, there was debate about whether any countywide elected officials should get raises.

Board member Brian Krajewski said the county clerk, treasurer, sheriff and regional superintendent should get raises in 2021 and 2022 because they're running departments.

But the board's only Democrat, Elizabeth Chaplin, said DuPage's countywide officials are paid significantly more than their counterparts in other collar counties. "I don't see any raises necessary for any of these going forward," she said.

State law requires the salaries of county board members and countywide elected officials be established at least 180 days before the beginning of their terms.