This story is about man biting dog. It is impossible to happen, but it did.
“Members of the City Council will receive a 4.87% pay cut this year. The salaries of the mayor and the council are tied to the area median income for a one-person household, which dropped from $83,370 in 2023 to $79,310 in 2024.
The cut cannot be changed because it is part of the City Charter, approved by voters in 2004. The pay cut is buried in the proposed city budget for 2026.
Santa Barbara City Councilman Oscar Gutierrez said he will feel the hit, but there is an upside in terms of public perception.
“It is almost a 5% cut,” Gutierrez said. “It is reflective of what’s happening locally to the people of our community, as much as I don’t like it because it hurts me financially.”
Maybe Sacramento, with its $80 billion deficit, will do the same. I doubt it. The same can be asked of L.A. and San Fran (the bidet by the Bay), they both have a one billion deficit.
Overpaid Government? Santa Barbara Council, Mayor Get Rare Pay Cut
Their salaries are tied to the area median income, which dropped about $4,000 from 2023 to 2024
by Joshua Molina, Noozhawk , 5/7/25 https://www.noozhawk.com/overpaid-government-in-santa-barbara-council-members-get-rare-pay-cut/?fbclid=IwY2xjawKKUCJleHRuA2FlbQIxMQBicmlkETFGVXJmNmpFTFR1Nm9MdXlDAR7T4KtLMuRXccb1xywc6zmjDRyLJsTvQKktFCvTToJiqLtH-4uykfHDxFVP3g_aem_WWqkfXkZGIMuDsrGEcED7g
Here’s some breaking news: Elected officials in Santa Barbara are getting a pay cut.
Members of the City Council will receive a 4.87% pay cut this year. The salaries of the mayor and the council are tied to the area median income for a one-person household, which dropped from $83,370 in 2023 to $79,310 in 2024.
The cut cannot be changed because it is part of the City Charter, approved by voters in 2004. The pay cut is buried in the proposed city budget for 2026.
Santa Barbara City Councilman Oscar Gutierrez said he will feel the hit, but there is an upside in terms of public perception.
“It is almost a 5% cut,” Gutierrez said. “It is reflective of what’s happening locally to the people of our community, as much as I don’t like it because it hurts me financially.”
All of the Santa Barbara City Council members, besides Gutierrez, have full-time jobs outside of working at the City Council. Mayor Randy Rowse is a retired restaurant owner.
The City Council is Gutierrez’s primary job, although he does make freelance money on the side through video production.
“With this system in place, it is a good thing for elected officials to be able to acknowledge the economic hardship,” he said.
In previous years, the City Council saw pay increases, from 2.5% to $4.5%, depending on the area median income changes.
Under the new pay rate, City Council members will make $63,3743 annually, plus about $30,000 in benefits and total compensation. The mayor will earn $79,310 annually, plus benefits.
The move is a dramatic difference from the Santa Barbara County Board of Supervisors, which voted in February to increase their own salaries by 48%, bumping their annual pay to $171,000. Supervisors have more responsibilities than council members; the county oversees a wide range of public services, including social services, elections, public health, behavioral services and more.
The city’s budget is about $577 million, and the county’s budget is about $1.7 billion.
The cuts in pay will save the city about $30,000 annually.
County supervisors voted to increase their pay after a market study of counties in similar size. The city, with community support, organized a campaign to tie salaries to the area median income to prevent the council from deciding their own pay in the future. It is written into the city charter.
The vote to approve the salaries was in November 2004, and it was a campaign issue at many of the forums in 2003. Groups such as the League of Women Voters of Santa Barbara, The Fund for Santa Barbara, the Coalition for a Living Wage and the-then Santa Barbara Region Chamber of Commerce supported the measure.
Attorney Steve Amerikaner convinced the City Council to put the matter on the ballot.
Before voter approval, council members received $800 a month, and the mayor received $1,200 a month.
Mayor Randy Rowse said he is happy that the council does not have to vote on its own salaries.
“I am fine with it,” Rowse said. “It is the way it should be. I really have no problem with it. Nobody likes to get a pay cut, but that’s the way the voters set it up, and I think it is appropriate.”
A coalition of community groups supported the ballot measure in 2004. Some argued that a professional salary would encourage working-class people to run for the seat, while members of the business community were trying to get business leaders to run, without taking a huge pay cut.
Councilman Gutierrez said he has to survive on about $50,000 a year after taxes, so the pay cut hurts. Still, he said, it’s best that the council has no say in its pay.
“I am 100% grateful for the pay that I am allowed by the people,” Gutierrez said. “I try to make sure that they see I am worth it. It is just the reality of what is happening locally and nationwide, and we, as representatives of the people, should reflect that.”
