COUNCIL PAY HIKE FOUND APPLICABLE TO PENSIONS.Byline: Patrick McGreevy Daily News Staff Writer The City Attorney's Office said Thursday that a pay raise that put the salary of Los Angeles City Council  The Los Angeles City Council is the governing body of the City of Los Angeles, California, United States. members into six figures will also boost their pension benefits. The legal opinion by Managing Assistant City Attorney Fred Merkin mer·kin n. A pubic wig for women. [Alteration of obsolete malkin, lower-class woman, mop, from Middle English, from Malkin, diminutive of the personal name Matilda.] resolved the last remaining legal issue over how council salaries are affected by recent pay hikes for Municipal Court judges. The council salaries are tied to the pay for judges, who in April received a 9.5 percent raise that would increase their pay this year from $98,069 to $105,059, as long as they certify cer·ti·fy v. cer·ti·fied, cer·ti·fy·ing, cer·ti·fies v.tr. 1. a. To confirm formally as true, accurate, or genuine. b. monthly that they have a coordination plan with the Superior Court. The city controller will receive 10 percent more than the council salary, the city attorney will receive 20 percent more and the mayor's salary will be 30 percent more, although Mayor Richard Riordan Richard J. Riordan (born May 1, 1930) is a Republican politician from California, U.S. who served as the California Secretary of Education from 2003–2005 and as Mayor of Los Angeles from 1993–2001. Riordan ran for Governor of California unsuccessfully in 2002. says he will continue to work for $1 a year. Although the judges' raise is considered a monthly bonus for additional work and does not count toward their pension, the council's raised pay should be treated as salary for pension purposes, Merkin said. ``To be sure, a fair argument to the contrary can be made,'' Merkin wrote, noting that the City Charter amendment approved by voters in 1990 said council members should not receive more compensation than judges. ``It must be rejected, however, because it gives primacy pri·ma·cy n. pl. pri·ma·cies 1. The state of being first or foremost. 2. Ecclesiastical The office, rank, or province of primate. to nonsalary determinations made in state government at the expense of the City Charter's independent determinations on such matters,'' Merkin wrote. Merkin said that while the state has limited the judges' pay to not affect pensions, the City Charter does not include that specific limitation. ``We see nothing in this that is unlawful,'' Merkin said. With the pension issue resolved, City Controller Rick Tuttle Rick Tuttle (born 1940) was Los Angeles City Controller from 1985 to 2001. He stressed the importance of creating a strong democratic influence at UCLA, which was in his words "the best large public university in a major city. sent letters to all of the elected city officials Thursday letting them know they will start receiving the higher pay unless they file a letter rejecting it. A minority of the council members have said they would not accept all of the raise or would donate it to charity or city services The examples and perspective in this article or section may represent an unduly geographically limited view of the subject. Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page. . |
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