Lexington City Council will hold a public hearing on an ordinance to increase compensation for the mayor and City Council at its next regular meeting on June 4.
City Manager Tom Carroll presented a proposal to city council at its May 7 meeting to raise the compensation for the mayor from $4,800 per year ($400 a month) to $8,400 per year ($700 a month), and to increase the compensation for City Council members to $7,200 per year ($600 a month) from $3,600 per year ($300 a month). Compensation for City Council and the mayor was last increased in 2005.
City Council had unanimously voted at its April 16 meeting to have the city manager look into increasing compensation. At both that meeting and the May 7 meeting, it was noted that any changes to compensation would not go into effect until July 1, 2027. At the April 16 meeting, Councilmember Leslie Straughan emphasized that any increase would not be made to benefit the current Council but rather to provide an incentive for people wishing to run for Council, either in this year’s election or in a future one.
At the May 7 meeting, Carroll provided Council with data showing how Lexington’s current compensation levels compare to other localities in Virginia, both larger and smaller than Lexington. He specifically compared Lexington to the city of Covington and town of Farmville. Covington has a population of just over 5,600 – less than Lexington’s 7,500 – and currently provides $7,800 in annual compensation to the mayor and $7,200 to the members of city council. Farmville, which has a population of 8,000, pays the mayor $9,000 per year, the vice mayor $7,200 per year, and other council members $6,000 per year.
State law allows localities with populations of less than 15,000 to have a maximum compensation level of $21,000 for the mayor and $20,000 for council members.
