BATON ROUGE (AP) — The few Baton Rouge Metro Council members that attended a hearing did not let their small number stand in the way of drilling down into the mayor's proposed budget.
The Advocate’s Andrea Gallo reports the five council members at Tuesday's hearing pressed Mayor-President Kip Holden's administration for answers about why pay raises were not included in the proposed budget, a topic that has become a key issue for some on the council.
Marsha Hanlon, the city's director of finance, defended the budget she crafted for including the same merit increases for employees that the city has provided for many years. While Hanlon deems the merit increases the same as pay raises, many people who work for the city do not because they are part of a pay plan that was promised all along.
"It's the definition of a raise that's in question here," said William Daniel, Holden's chief administrative officer.
Anyone who works for city government follows a 12-step pay plan, which includes merit raises at each step. In addition, the city also gives longevity pay to reward those who have worked for the city for 10 years or more.
Councilwoman Ronnie Edwards asked how it's possible for city workers to be receiving this money, but to say they have not received raises in years. She said the communication between employees and supervisors may have led to the disconnect, and questioned if the council should have workshops that better explain the pay plan.
The next budget hearing will be Nov. 24.
