Salaries for the mayor and Galesburg City Council members are expected to remain the same for terms beginning next spring.
The Galesburg City Council on Monday will discuss on first reading ordinances to set the salaries for city elected officials for terms beginning May 2025.
It’s proposed the salaries of mayor and City Council members stay the same, while the position of city clerk could receive a 4% yearly increase to their salary.
The position of Galesburg mayor receives $12,000 per year, while the city’s seven aldermen get $5,000 per year.
Aldermen would likely be asked to vote on the salary ordinances at the Sept. 3 City Council meeting.
The Corporate Authorities of a municipality must fix salaries of all officers who hold elective office for a definite term in an ordinance other than the appropriation or budget ordinance. The salaries would not be increased nor diminished during that term and would be fixed at least 180 days before the beginning of the terms of the officers.
Although an elected position, the salary for the city clerk is proposed to be set commensurate with other department directors based on the City’s Classification and Salary Schedule for exempt salaried personnel (Range 24EX). The salary for the city clerk is recommended with a 4% increase on the base salary for each of the four years during the term, beginning May 2025. This increase is the same as the current Classification and Salary Schedule approved for all full-time employees.
The clerk would receive $91,766 from May 1, 2025 to April 30, 2026; $95,436 from May 1, 2026, through April 30, 2027; $99,253 from May 1, 2027, through April 30, 2028; and $103,223 from May 1, 2028, and continuing thereafter.
From about 1989 until 1997, the mayor’s salary had been $6,000, and was then increased to $10,000 beginning with the term that started in May 1997. The proposed salary for the Mayor has been $12,000 since 2008.
There was an attempt to have an escalated salary ordinance approved in 2008 (2009 – $12,000; 2010 – $12,500; 2011 – $13,000; 2012 – $13,500; and January 1, 2013 – $14,000), but it failed and instead Council approved one that reflected the $12,000 per year.
For the Council members, their salary had been $1,800 since the early 1980’s and was eventually increased to $5,000 beginning in April 1999.