Board requests raise in pay

If town meeting voters give their blessing, members of the Springfield Select Board will get their first raise in 43 years.

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Board requests raise in pay
By Susan Smallheer Herald Staff - Published: January 17, 2008

SPRINGFIELD — If town meeting voters give their blessing, members of the Springfield Select Board will get their first raise in 43 years.

Under the proposal, the annual pay would jump from $500 a year to $1,250.

The Springfield Select Board agreed on a 4-1 vote Monday evening to change the recommended amount, which is voted annually by voters at town meeting.

Only Select Board member John Swanson said the $1,250 figure was too high, and he voted against the raise, saying he favored a $40 per meeting payment, just over $1,000 a year.

The board meets about 26 times a year, along with a couple of emergency meetings and subcommittee meetings a year. Board member Mark Blanchard had suggested $25 for a subcommittee meeting.

The board debated whether to change the pay from a lump sum figure to a per-meeting fee. Some towns had adopted the per-meeting pay as a way of encouraging attendance. But the board noted that attendance at meetings is never an issue, and members said creating a new payment system would be more trouble than it was worth anyway.

Select Board member John Hall noted the $500 fee dated back to 1965, and when that figure was adjusted for inflation, the $500 mushroomed into $3,274.

"It's political suicide to ask for $3,300," said Hall, who said he could support $1,250 a year.

The town had received information from the Vermont League of Cities and Towns about the pay for Select Board members, and that there were "very few" towns paying their board members $500. Most pay their elected officials more.

Select Board member Mark Blanchard noted the pay really had nothing to do with the size of the town. Board Chair Mary Helen Hawthorne suggested doubling the annual pay to $1,000 a year.

Blanchard said the board members should get at least $1,500 a year.

"It would probably get turned down," Blanchard added.

Hawthorne, who has served as chairman of the board for the past several years but is not running for re-election this year, said that some towns pay their chairmen more money because of the time commitment. But Hawthorne said she wasn't in favor of the chairman getting paid more than the other board members. http://www.rutlandherald.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2008801170356