Moss: Recommendation for 60% commissioner raise was 'invalid'
OTTAWA COUNTY — The Ottawa County Board didn't end up voting for a possible 60% pay raise and healthcare stipend on Tuesday, May 14, as expected.
The resolution, which would've given commissioners and other elected officials a raise next year, was taken off the agenda because it wasn't a "valid recommendation," according to Board Chair Joe Moss.
The changes would've gone into effect in 2025.
The item appeared on the initial agenda, published Friday, but was updated Tuesday. Moss claimed one of the recommendations was made "outside the allowed window" for the Ottawa County Officer's Compensation Commission to make decisions, and another didn't receive enough support to be legally valid.
Per state law, specifically MCL 45.474, the OCC has 45 calendar days from its first meeting to make recommendations for salaries in the coming two years. It also says the commission “shall not take action or make a determination without a concurrence of a majority of the members appointed and serving on the commission.”
A vote to raise the county treasurer and water resources commissioner salaries to match the county clerk was taken May 2, outside the 45-day window that started when the OCC met March 11. The window for the commission to act ended April 25.
Moss said a vote taken April 11 to increase salaries for commissioners by 60% and provide a monthly stipend for health expenses, while conducted within the window, was invalid because only four members of the OCC attended the meeting — enough for a quorum, but all four members would need to approve a motion to make it valid, per MCL 45.474.
More: OI supporters recommend 60% raise in commissioner pay
But only three members — Mark Alan Brouwer, Angela Loreth and Lynn Janson — voted in favor of the motion to increase pay for commissioners, while Chair Larry Jackson voted against.
Moss referred to the pay boost as "the phantom 60% raise."
Because the window for the OCC to make determinations is closed, there is no opportunity to adjust recommendations.
“(The OCC) cannot come back, cannot change their recommendations. That process is complete. So, while I do believe commissioners deserve a raise, as is traditional and is necessary, they likely will not receive one for 2025 or 2026 due to how things have worked out."
The board does not have to approve recommendations made by the OCC; it can reject them with a two-thirds vote. The resolutions have historically come before the board before taking effect.
The three OCC members who voted in favor of raising commissioners’ pay have ties to Ottawa Impact, created by Moss and Vice Chair Sylvia Rhodea.
Brouwer's wife donated $100 to OI's political action committee in 2021. Loreth donated $104.10 to Rhodea's campaign in 2022, and $104.10 each to two OI-endorsed candidates for the Allendale Public Schools Board of Education.
Janson applied for the District 6 commission seat after Kyle Terpstra resigned in November. He expressed support for the OI majority during his interview.
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Under the submitted resolution, the board chair salary would've increased from $27,127 to $43,430.20; the vice chair salary from $21,523 to $34,436.90; and all other commissioners’ salaries from $20,844 to $33,350.40.
Each commissioner also would've received a $1,000 monthly stipend for health insurance.
The other elected offices in the resolution were set to receive an 8% raise in 2025, followed by a 6% raise in 2026. It would've raised the treasurer and water resource commissioner salaries to be in line with the county clerk. Those salaries, as listed in the apparently invalid resolution, would have been:
Prosecutor: $169,874 in 2024, $183,463.92 in 2025, $194,471.75 in 2026
Sheriff: $149,618 in 2024, $161,587.44 in 2025, $180,977.93 in 2026
Treasurer: $120,471 in 2024, $132,659.64 in 2025, $140,619.22 in 2026
Clerk/Register of Deeds: $122,833 in 2024, $132,659.64 in 2025, $140,619.22 in 2026
Water Resources Commissioner: $110,811 in 2024, $132,659.64 in 2025, $140,619.22 in 2026
Salaries for county road commissioners were also outlined in the resolution. The chairperson of the commission would've seen a boost from $9,500 this year to $15,500 in 2025 and 2026, while other members would have gone from $9,000 this year to $12,500 in 2025 and 2026.
— Contact reporter Mitchell Boatman at mboatman@hollandsentinel.com.
This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: Moss: Recommendation for 60% commissioner raise was 'invalid'
