Sacramento’s Elected Politicians Enrich Themselves With Pay Increases and Shiny Stadiums

The Sacramento County Board of Supervisors just approved their own massive 37% salary raise. They also approved increasing their car allowances from $500 to $550 per month.

The 37% raise will increase their salaries to $173,398 from $127,159. Supervisor Sue Frost was the only “no” vote both times on the raise stating, “I cannot vote to give myself a raise while my constituents are facing higher taxes, inflation, and energy prices.”

The median household income in Sacramento County is $76,422.

On the heels of this tone-deaf group of elected supervisors richly remunerating themselves, Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg announced he was moving forward with the city’s plans to build a professional soccer stadium – even though plans for a Major League Soccer expansion team fell through recently.

“Plans for a new soccer stadium in the Railyards just north of downtown Sacramento remain in place despite the region being passed over for Major League Soccer expansion last week,” the Sacramento Bee reported. “Sacramento, behind USL club Republic FC, remained a candidate throughout the process, but ultimately the nod went to San Diego.”

“We are moving forward with a first-class stadium in The Railyards,” Mayor Darrell Steinberg wrote in a statement to The Sacramento Bee. “Hopefully, it will be in partnership with Major League Soccer but either way we are going to work in partnership with the Sac Republic team, the community, and the fan base to bring years of great soccer to Sacramento.”

According to ESPN, “One source said that the costs for the Sacramento stadium went from $300 million to $400 million, while infrastructure costs increased from $27 million to $47 million.”

In any normal person’s budget, 37% raises and professional soccer stadiums are considered luxury items to be enjoyed during times of plenty. Sacramento City and County are not exactly reveling in abundance – except perhaps the abundance of drug addicted street vagrants taking over neighborhoods, public parks and living along the rivers.

The County of Sacramento contracted with consultants Ralph Andersen & Associates  to conduct a compensation survey of Elected Board Officials in the established market for Sacramento County in order to review the current pay practice and salaries. They recommended that the percent of salary for the Supervisors be increased from 55% to 75% of Superior Court Judge salary, which is the median percentage used by other  jurisdictions, resulting in an increase of approximately 20% to the Board of Supervisor salaries, according to the report provided to Supervisors by the Department of Personnel Services.

They also recommended “Use median of optimized market. This is the standard used for the majority of positions within Sacramento County, and therefore is a logical and reasonable market position for the Board. This results in a recommended increase of approximately 29% for Supervisor salaries.”

This has been the game played by elected lawmakers in recent decades. They learn that supervisors in another county are being paid more, and seek out justification to “align the board with other jurisdictions” and raise their own salaries and benefits.

Mayor Steinberg and the Sacramento City Council members will receive a pay increase in June following the city’s compensation commission approval of a 3.5% salary increase. The City of Sacramento is facing a projected deficit of $24.5 million for the 2024-25 fiscal year, Capradio.org reported.

As for the Sacramento County $7.3 billion recommended budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2022-23, the closest they get to addressing a budget shortfall is, “ongoing expenditures are more closely aligned with ongoing resources.”