PLACENTIA

City Council members Tuesday agreed to wait before asking voters to raise their pay. It’s been almost 20 years since the council has received an increase in wages. Their $150 a month is far below the pay of council members in other nearby cities, who receive between $360 and $650 a month.

But even though they are the lowest-paid council in the region, members didn’t want to ask the taxpayers to pay the county’s $26,000 fee to put the matter on the March 7 ballot for a public vote.

“We didn’t feel it was apropos to spend the city’s money so we could get a raise,” Councilman Norman Z. Eckenrode said. “We just kind of looked at each other and said, ‘We’re not good stewards if we vote to put this on the ballot.’ ”

Eckenrode said the council may consider putting the pay increase on the November ballot, when a municipal election will bring down the costs of adding another item to the local ballot.