Council votes in pay raises for next term
By Arthur McLean Editor

The next mayor and council of Thomasville will be making more money than its predecessors.

The Thomasville City Council voted Monday night to approve a pay increase from $100 per month to $400 per month and an expenses increase to $400 per month as well. The increase will take effect after the next municipal election.

The mayor's salary was also increased by the council. A pay increase from the city of Thomasville will bump the mayor's pay to $42,995 per year. The mayor's position has not had a pay raise in four years. This one represents a 16 percent increase. As with the council's pay increase, the mayor's will not go into effect until after the next municipal election.

The mayor's expense account of $400 per month remained unchanged.

Related to the council's pay increase, members of the water board approved a pay increase from $10 per month to $75 per month. The water board operates independently of the city council and is self-supporting based on water and sewer fees.

The superintendent of the water board was given a raise of 16 percent to $28,460. The increase does not go into effect until after the next election.

Since the mayor usually serves in both positions, the person serving as mayor after the next election is expected to pull in both salaries for a combined total of $71,455.

Ambulance service

The council amended its budget to put $25,000 in the Thomasville Healthcare Authority budget. The city has usually budgeted that amount, but did not for 2008 because the money had not been used in several years, Day said.

The budget amendment allows the authority to be more flexible in how it decides to act. The driving factor behind the money move is concern at the authority over the financial viability of the privately operated ambulance services in the county.

Day said he trusted authority members to make wise decisions in helping the ambulance services and that the city needed to stay out of the ambulance business.

In other business, the council approved the hiring of Dena Rogers as executive assistant to Debra M. Fox at the planning and development office.

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