Published: June 19, 2009 11:25 pm      

Council to vote on budget, pay raise

RACELAND — City employees are one step closer to a 50-cent pay raise after a city council meeting on Friday.

The council approved first reading of the motion for the pay raise with a vote of 4 to 3. Mayor Don McKee made the tie-breaking vote in favor of the measure.

Council members Charles Powell, John Rowe and Mike Wilson voted in favor of the increase. Council members Tom Cumpton, Joyce Potter and Ann Catlin voted against the increase.

If approved, the increase would be retroactive to Feb. 13, McKee said. Raceland’s approximately 17 employees would get the extra money in upcoming paychecks.

Those employees include office employees, water works employees and police officers, McKee said.

Catlin said she voted against the increase because city employee contracts are good through September 2010.

Her vote was made because the increase shouldn’t be retroactive, not because city workers shouldn’t get paid more, Catlin said.

The second reading of the pay increase issue will be Monday, McKee said.

The council also tabled the first reading of the city budget until that meeting. Council members will have a budget workshop at 6 p.m. and meet for the first reading of the budget and pay raise vote at 7.

In the version of the budget discussed at Friday’s meeting, general fund expenditures were more than $100,000 higher than income.

Council members will have to address that issue in upcoming meetings, McKee said.

A meeting for the second reading of the budget will be Tuesday.

KATIE BRANDENBURG can be reached at kbrandenburg@dailyindependent.com or (606) 326-2657.