GRETNA, LA (AP) — The Gretna City Council has approved 29 percent raises for the city's mayor and police chief.
The New Orleans Advocate’s Chad Calder reports the raises, which go into effect next month, increase the salaries of Mayor Belinda Constant and Police Chief Arthur Lawson from $70,000 to $90,000 a year.
The raises came over the objections of about a half-dozen residents who said the raise for Constant, elected in 2013, is premature.
The raises were proposed Wednesday by Councilman Wayne Rau, who said they would make the pay for the positions comparable to that in similar cities in Louisiana.
He said neither the mayor nor the chief asked for the raises, and he simply felt that after eight years, it was time to approve an increase.
