Mayor’s Pay Tripled Between 2007 and 2011 – Get it Back in 2012

Salary Increased From $9,600 in 2007 to $34,000 in 2011

In the five years that Matt Alexander has been the Mayor of Wappingers Falls his salary has increased by more than 250%. In 2006 -2007, Alexanders first term as Mayor, he was paid an annual salary of $9,600. For fiscal year 2011-2012 Mayor Alexander will be paid $34,000. The Mayor’s cost for contractual services also increased rapidly. The Mayor’s Contractual Services rose from $1,000 in the 2006-2007 fiscal year to $3,600 in the 2011-2012 budget.

We are living in a time of financial uncertainty. Layoff’s are far too common an occurrence,  jobless rates are high and pay-raises are a rarity. In an effort to control ever increasing taxes NY State passed a tax-cap bill that makes it difficult for local governments to raise taxes by more than 2%. It is remarkable that during this financial climate, in Dutchess County’s second-most impoverished community, the elected Mayor can get pay increases that have more than more than tripled his salary in just 5 years.

Recognition for Education and Full-time Hours?

Mayor Matt Alexander

It is undeniably that Matt Alexander is better educated than his predecessors and he dedicates many hours of service to his five priorities for the Village.

His supporters reasonably argue that his Notre Dame degree and full-time work hours have earned him the high percentages in pay raises. This logic is not as reasonable to Villagers who have lost their jobs, live on a fixed income or have had little or no pay increases in the past 5 years.

Taxpayer’s Continue Paying After Mayor Alexander Moves On

Mayor Alexander has announced that he want’s to challenge Nan Hayworth for U.S. Congress in 2012. Mayor Alexander can not continue to dedicate full-time hours to the Village of Wappingers Falls while he is taking on an well financed incumbent for U.S. Congress. Mayor Alexander will continue to collect his pay check while he is absent from Village Hall and out on the campaign trail.

Win or loose Matt Alexander will likely parley his campaign into a position that is more rewarding than being Mayor of a small Village. Either he will step down in 2012 and a new mayor will be appointed, or a new mayor will elected in 2013. The new Mayor will start at a salary that has been generously increased for MATT ALEXANDER – not for the position of Mayor of Wappingers Falls.

It was poor financial planning on the part of the Village Board to grant performance pay increases to Matt Alexander rather than providing standard pay increases for the position of Mayor of Wappingers Falls.

Lower Mayor’s Pay in the 2012-2013 Budget

The Village Board needs to consider the burden that these lucrative pay increases have placed on taxpayers.  The Village Board should decrease the salary for the position of Mayor of Wappingers Falls. The Mayors salary should be adjusted based on annual CSEA increases starting at $9,600 in the 2006-2007 fiscal year. The change will return the mayors salary to one that is comparable to other Dutchess County villages. The Village Board needs to make this change in the 2012-2013 fiscal year – before a new mayor is in office.

For a listing of other villages pay rates see: Overpaid and Overstaffed

2011-2012 Budget

2006-2007 Budget

Posted by The Village Voice on December 26, 2011. Filed under breaking,Government,Opinion. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry