Erie County Council rejects 'extraordinarily high' pay raises for top Davis appointees
Erie County Executive Brenton Davis hoped to give a number of his top political appointees a hefty pay raise.
His initial requests were denied Tuesday.
In a unanimous vote, Erie County Council rejected Davis' request to have the new director of Veterans Affairs receive an annual salary of $78,351.
The request was 65% higher than the position's base salary of $47,405, and roughly 16% higher than the position's allotment — $67,586 — in the 2022 budget.
The council, composed of four Democrats and three Republicans, also rejected Davis' salary requests for the public defender and director of administration, and unanimously agreed on new salaries for both positions.
Davis, a Republican, requested $104,793 for the public defender; council approved $101,732. Davis requested $98,534 for the director of administration; council approved $92,879.
Council rejects VA director salary
In January, Davis requested that his new director of Veterans Affairs, Joe Benacci, a 21-year U.S. Army Reserve veteran and Davis campaign donor, be granted an annual salary of $78,351.
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Davis, who also serves in the U.S. Army Reserve, said he wanted an expanded role for the director, from a merely clerical position to a more proactive outreach coordinator, going to job fairs, treatment and veterans courts and other events.
On Tuesday, 3rd District Councilwoman Mary Rennie pushed back on the request, insisting that Davis was choosing a salary without following the process outlined in the county personnel code — as specified in the Home Rule Charter — and its established pay plan.
"The position of the director of Veterans Affairs has a classification within that pay plan," Rennie said in an interview with the Erie Times-News on Wednesday. "There is room for deviation within that — but not the deviation that (Davis) requested. He was looking to completely reclassify the position into a much higher pay range."
Rennie, a Democrat, said the $78,351 figure was "extraordinarily high" even for similar offices in Pennsylvania, and that Davis shouldn't "invent positions and responsibilities" and decide where it falls within the pay plan.
"Once we go outside the personnel code," she said, "then it's like a row of dominoes." "There are unforeseen consequences to that."
Rennie recommended that the Davis administration go through Human Resources, work with its consulting firm, J.L. Nick & Associates, and come back to council with a new recommendation.
Council agreed and unanimously rejected Davis' request.
Other salaries
Davis requested his new public defender, Nicole Sloane, who had worked at the Public Defender's Office since 2006 and who also donated to Davis' campaign, receive an annual salary of $104,793.
Since the public defender position was removed from the county pay plan last year, the council had the option of setting any salary.
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Rennie offered an amendment to set the salary at $101,732. She referred to the figure as a "compromise" amount, as it was a roughly 3% decrease from what former Public Defender Pat Kennedy made last year.
Council had also allotted $107,936 for the position in the 2022 budget because it expected Kennedy to continue as public defender. Kennedy had held the post for 11 years, and had been Sloane's supervisor.
Council members unanimously approved the amended salary.
Davis requested that his director of administration, Doug Smith, who served as county clerk for 19 years, receive a salary of $98,534, a 23% increase from the amount allotted — $80,096 — in the 2022 budget.
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Rennie offered an amendment that set the position's salary at $92,879, which is a 6% increase from what Smith earned last year as county clerk.
Rennie said the pay plan dictates that someone who has an internal promotion to a permanent spot should get a 6% raise.
Council members unanimously approved the amended salary.
Council Chairman Brian Shank lauded his colleagues for working across the aisle and reaching a "happy medium" on the salaries.
"We're here for the people, we're here for our constituents," said Shank, a Republican. "We understand what the county executive is trying to do. However, we have to be able to afford it. And Ms. Rennie came up with some great compromises. The key to all this is compromise."
Smith told the Erie Times-News on Wednesday that the Davis administration did not have a comment on the votes.
A.J. Rao can be reached at arao@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @ETNRao.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Pay hikes: Erie County Council rejects pay raises for top Davis appointments
