Lansing mayor, City Council members will get 4.4% raises this year, more in 2020 and 2021

LANSING — Lansing Mayor Andy Schor, City Clerk Chris Swope and all eight city council members will get 4.4% raises this year.

Their pay will increase 2% in 2020 and then 2.1% in 2021.

Members of a citizen-led Elected Officers Compensation Committee said they recommended the raises to account for inflation and to reflect pay for elected leaders in comparable cities.

The panel's recommendation takes effect automatically unless voted down within 30 days by two-thirds of City Council.

And no one on the council introduced a resolution to kill the raises prior to an April 21 deadline.

At-large City Council Member Patricia Spitzley previously said she supported raises for the mayor and city clerk but not council members. Council positions are part-time. The mayor and clerk work full time for the city.

Spitzley said Tuesday she did not realize the deadline to vote down raises had passed.

"I totally forgot," Spitzley said, noting that she missed an April 8 City Council meeting due to illness.

How much money will Lansing officials make?

The council's president, who previously made $26,640 annually, will earn $28,966 in 2021. The council's vice president previously earned $25,140 but will make $27,335 by 2021.

Council members who don't serve in leadership made $24,240. Those six council members will see their salaries increase to $26,356 in 2021.

Lansing Mayor Andy Schor had a $128,400 salary. The mayor's pay will rise to $139,610 in 2021.

The city clerk, who previously earned $87,066, will make $94,668 by 2021.

Earlier this year, the Elected Officers Compensation Committee made an informal proposal for larger raises beginning at 8% in 2019.

Council members made it clear they considered those 8% raises to be too high, which prompted the committee to come back to council with a more modest proposal.

The 2019 raises will be the first raises for elected officials in Lansing since 2015.

Lansing's Elected Officers Compensation Committee's members are appointed by the mayor and approved by the City Council. It meets every two years to consider pay and benefits for Lansing's elected leaders. This year, the committee recommended no changes to benefits. 

More:

How much money should Lansing's mayor, city council members make? Panel proposes raises

Lansing's returning department heads get raises in 2019

Contact Sarah Lehr at (517) 377-1056 or slehr@lsj.com. Follow her on Twitter @SarahGLehr.