YORBA LINDA : Councilmen Raise Their Pay by $100

The City Council this week approved a $100-a-month raise for council members that will go into effect in December, 1992.

Councilmen voted 3-2 for the raise, which will increase members’ salaries to $500 a month. Councilman Gene Wisner proposed the raise after learning that census figures put the city’s population at more than 50,000. State law allows council pay increases as cities’ populations rise to certain levels.

On average, City Council members in Orange County are paid $412.77 a month. For cities with populations between 50,000 and 75,000, the monthly average is $509.50. The most recent count put Yorba Linda’s at 52,367.

Supporters of the raise point out that council members must put in additional time on regional committees and at community events that go beyond their primary duty to participate in the twice-a-month council meetings.

“The amount of time put in by these people is tremendous,” Mayor Mark Schwing said Wednesday. “There’s a lot of involvement, and if you consider by the hour, it’s not a lot of money.”

Schwing abstained from a vote last month to place the raise on the council’s agenda because he gives his salary back to the city for special programs. He approved the raise in Tuesday’s vote, however. His was the swing vote. Councilmen Henry W. Wedaa and Irwin M. Fried voted against the increase.

Under state law, the the raise cannot go into effect until after the next council election, in November, 1992.

“Some of us may not even be (on the council), so we may not necessarily be voting ourselves a raise,” Schwing said.

Although no residents voiced opposition at the council meeting, Fried has said that such a raise would be inappropriate in light of the city’s tight budget. This year, the city has an $800,000 budget shortfall that will be covered through reserve funds.