Anaheim Councilman Switches, Says He Will Help Scuttle Board’s Boost in Pay

An Anaheim city councilman who previously supported a widely criticized decision to pay council members extra fees for serving on two city agencies, thus tripling their salaries, said Tuesday he has changed his mind and will vote to rescind the action.

The decision announced by Councilman Fred Hunter at Tuesday’s City Council meeting would give opponents of the action the three votes needed to scuttle the controversial raise. Council members Miriam Kaywood and Irv Pickler had previously said they would vote to rescind the action if it came before the council again. The council voted to place the salary issue on next week’s agenda for discussion.

In an emotional speech to a sparse City Hall audience, Hunter said he had changed his mind because of the critical reaction the council’s decision received in the press and said he did not want to be labeled “money-hungry.”

‘Really Ruffled Me’

“The news accounts have really ruffled me,” Hunter said. “Anybody who knows me knows that I did not take this job for the money. I frankly don’t want any more talk about money. I’ll vote to rescind the raise and go back to what we were making before.”

In supporting the council’s previous vote, Hunter, along with Mayor Ben Bay and Councilman Bill Ehrle, had asserted that members of the council are vastly underpaid for the time spent conducting city business and serving on various city agencies.

Ehrle on Tuesday again defended the council’s action, saying the issue had been misrepresented by “people trying to make political hay.”

“It was an administrative act and I don’t apologize for it,” Ehrle said. “All we are asking for is a little compensation for time.”

Under the provisions of the city charter, council members receive a salary of $400 per month. The mayor receives a monthly salary of $800.

Other Payments

Council members are also reimbursed for travel, entertainment and other expenses.

The council voted 3 to 1 on Jan. 19--with Pickler absent--to pay its members a $150 fee for each Redevelopment Agency meeting attended and a $50 fee for each Housing Authority meeting attended. The two agencies meet briefly before the weekly City Council meetings. Under state law, council members may compensate themselves for serving on other city agencies.

With the extra fees, monthly salaries have risen to $1,200 for council members and $1,600 for the mayor.

Kaywood, who has been giving her portion of the salary increase back to the city and to various charities, has argued that the raise was an attempt to “subvert” the charter process. She said the issue should be placed before the voters.