CORTLAND COUNTY LEGISLATURE 2014

   Cortland County Legislature Chairperson Susan Briggs more than doubled her salary this year when she was made chairperson. That is why we were surprised to read in her State of the County address that she wants more for herself and for the other legislators. She spoke about the jail, solid waste, and other important issues but the salary request caught us off guard.

   The Cortland Standard which published much of her State of the County address last Thursday noted that the chair makes $15,000 and the other legislators make $6,000 yearly. Minority and majority leaders make more.

   “Our legislators are at the very bottom of salaries across the state but the issues we are faced with, the time commitment we serve, the dedication we provide is by far, no less than any other county in the state,” she said.

   Although what she says may be true, we ask: Should taxpayers reward legislators based on comparisons similar to contract demands of public unions, or should  taxpayers reward legislators based on their actual performance? These are not original questions on our part, they are borrowed, but we believe they are germane. We urge the county Personnel Committee to make use of them.
   On the subject of contract demands by the county's public unions, will a pay raise for legislators be referenced in future union contract talks?

   We received a timely tip from a Cortland County resident that Cortland County legislators are guided by a local salary law which was adopted in 1971. (The city had a similar law.) The law mandates that a pay increase or decrease shall be adopted before Election Day, and take effect the following term. State law directs that a notice of a local law shall be published in a newspaper and include a public hearing. The new local law is then sent to the Secretary of State to be registered—all of this before Election Day according to our source of information on the 1971 county salary law. This may explain why the legislators of Cortland County have not sought a pay raise as often as legislators of other counties. Other counties don’t have this law, and legislators often vote to increase their own salaries after elections--with no discussion of the subject before elections.
   "The salary law was intended to keep them honest and up front," we were told.
   Chairperson Briggs did not address in greater detail any prior and current mismanagement of the landfill and continued losses subsidized by taxpayers. We certainly don't blame her for the omission or place upon her the full responsibility of an inherited fiasco. We can understand why it wasn't a prominent talking point. Plans for a future "ash for trash" deal don't preclude present losses. How long will this go on? Is this performance worthy of an increase of legislators' salaries?

   Legislator Newell Willcox did not agree with Chairperson Briggs on several issues, one of which was the keeping of a ten percent fund balance based on a county budget of $120 million. Mr. Willcox is a successful businessman and is justifiably outspoken on tax matters. He claims that $30 million of the county budget is “a wash,” and that the county has taken an extra $3 million for reserves. We agree with him and share his concern, and urge the county to reconsider.

   The State Comptroller’s reserve fund recommendation is ten percent. A pertinent issue such as that raised by Mr. Willcox is not addressed specifically by the state comptroller. Our county legislators have a fiduciary duty not to take more tax money than is necessary. We are reminded of the Homer School District overreach in this regard, and how it was chastised by the state comptroller not too long ago.
   We praised Legislator Willcox and former Legislator Tony Pace for their work ethic in another post about two years ago. We would like to praise all of our legislators, but there are "good ones and bad ones" in the mix. Some legislators care about the taxpayers and the cost of public services; others care only about "the government family," which often includes themselves. We wish to praise and give credit to those who care about both.