City Council Extreme Salary Increase Heads to Early Voting on April 23rd-May 1st

By: Miguel Munoz, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc., Copyright 2018

The City of Eagle Pass, Texas City Charter Amendments Special Election heads to Early Voting Period starting Monday, April 23, 2018 through Tuesday, May 1, 2018 at the Multi-Purpose Center, located at 480 South Adams Street, in Fort Duncan Park in downtown Eagle Pass, Texas, featuring the controversial Proposition “B” calling for the Mayor and City Council members to receive a salary to be capped at 60% for the Mayor and 40% for City Council members of the current City Manager’s salary from the current $10 per month or $120 per year. Regular Election Day is on Saturday, May 5, 2018.

A survey conducted by the Eagle Pass Business Journal of surrounding cities pay for their Mayor and City Council members found that the Proposition “B” seeking a significant salary increase for the Eagle Pass Mayor and City Council members of 60% and 40% of the current City Manager’s salary to be extremely high for cities comparable in population size and only major metropolitan cities much larger in population size than Eagle Pass are paying salaries to those sought in the City Charter Amendment Special Election.

Proposition “B” would increase the Eagle Pass Mayor’s salary from $10 per month or $120 per year to up to $84,000 per year and City Council members salaries from $10 per month or $120 per year to up to $56,000 per year. The City of Eagle Pass is currently advertising for a City Manager whose salary range is between $110,000 to $140,000 per year plus benefits. The Eagle Pass City Council is composed of the Mayor and four Council members, but is expected to increase to six Council members plus the Mayor after the 2020 Census, according to the City Charter.

For instance, Del Rio Mayor Robert Garza told the Eagle Pass Business Journal that he and the City Council members receive a salary of only $200 per month or $2,400 per year while Uvalde City Council member Rogelio M. Munoz stated that they receive $25 per month or $300 per year. Other similar size cities to Eagle Pass such as Seguin, Texas pays their Mayor $750 per month or $9,000 per year and City Council members receive $425 per month or $5,100 per year while the City of New Braunfels pays their Mayor $75 per posted meeting and City Council members $50 per posted meeting.

Other cities such as Corpus Christi, Texas pays their Mayor $750 per month or $9,000 per year and City Council members receive $500 per month or $6,000 per year while the City of San Antonio, Texas pays their Mayor $61,725 per year and City Council members $45,722 per year. The City of Laredo, Texas recently approved in 2016 to increase their Mayor and City Council members salaries to $75,000 per year for the Mayor and $50,000 per year for City Council members.

The City of Laredo seems to be the role model the Eagle Pass City Council appears to be following in Proposition “B” of the City Charter Amendments. However, the City of Laredo population is 257,156 (2016) while the City of Eagle Pass population  is 28,834 (2016), almost 10 times larger than Eagle Pass. The City of San Antonio has a population of 1,493,000 (Million)(2016), Corpus Christi has a population of 325,733 (2016), Del Rio has a population of 35,998 (2016), New Braunfels has a population of 73,959 (2016), the City of Seguin has a population of 28,614 (2016), and the City of Uvalde has a population of 16,540 (2016), according to the U.S. Census.

According to the Eagle Pass Business Journal survey, the City Charter Amendment Proposition “B” seeking a salary increase for the Mayor and City Council members is extremely excessive among cities comparable to similar size cities like Eagle Pass, and even larger than what the City of San Antonio with a population of 1,493,000 (Million) pays its Mayor and City Council members.

Eagle Pass registered voters and taxpayers will get to decide if the City Mayor and City Council members get a salary increase potentially larger than the City of San Antonio pays at the City Charter Amendments Special Election starting April 23rd through May 1st and regular Election Day on Saturday, May 5th.
Other City Charter Amendments Propositions on the Special Election Ballot include the following:

PROPOSITION “A”: Shall Section 3-1 of the City Charter be amended to CHANGE the election and number of City Council Members by adding two new City Council Members so there will a Mayor, three at large Council members and three Council members selected from three new districts once the City reaches a population of 30,000?  This changes the election of City Council members from at-large to three City Council members be elected at-large and three by single member districts.

PROPOSITION “C”: Shall Section 7-3 of the City Charter be amended to provide for the appointment and evaluation of a City Secretary by the City Council?  This changes the appointment and evaluation of the City Secretary by the City Manager to the City Council and Mayor.
PROPOSITION “D”:  Shall Section 7-2 of the City Charter be amended to provide for the approval of City Council for the selection of a Department Head by the City Manager?  This changes the appointment and hiring of all City Department Heads from the City Manager to the City Council and Mayor.

PROPOSITION “E”: Shall Section 3-2 of the City Charter be amended to provide for a candidate fee or, alternatively, signature to become a candidate for City Council or Mayor?  This changes the current no fee (free) to run as a candidate for Mayor and City Council to a $600 candidate fee to run for Mayor and City Council, and allow a candidate to obtain a petition of City registered voters to waive the $600 candidate registration fee and be given a $5 credit for each signature obtained towards the $600 candidate registration fee.

PROPOSITION “F”: Shall Section 7-1 of the City Charter be amended to add a provision for an annual report from the City Manager updating the City’s Master Plan? This changes to ensure that the City Manager provides City Council an annual report on the status of the City’s Master Plan.

All Eagle Pass registered voters are encouraged to exercise their right to vote in the City of Eagle Pass City Charter Amendments Special Election during Early Voting from April 23rd through May 1st and Election Day on May 5th.