San Gabriel City Hall (Photo – sangabrielcity.com)
The San Gabriel City Council voted 4-1 on Tuesday, November 4, to approve an ordinance raising council members’ salaries.
By Zamourad Iqbal
Council compensation was last increased in 2009, when members earned $893.70 per month. Four councilmembers supported the increase—Denise Menchaca, Eric Chan, Tony Ding, and Jorge Herrera Avila—while John Wu opposed it. Nearby cities, including Pasadena, Alhambra, Arcadia, La Verne, Rosemead, South El Monte, South Pasadena, Temple City, and West Covina, have already raised council stipends.
Nearby cities, including Pasadena, Alhambra, Arcadia, La Verne, Rosemead, South El Monte, South Pasadena, Temple City, and West Covina, have already taken steps to increase their councilmember salaries.
Mayor Denise Menchaca said the salary adjustment will help attract more candidates to city government.
“We’ve adjusted staff salaries to match today’s cost of living, so it’s fitting that we begin reviewing council compensation with the same perspective,” Menchaca said. “This will help future candidates and our city ensure that we attract quality candidates who also represent diversity and employment opportunities.”
Councilmember John Wu opposed the increase, recommending the stipend be reduced to zero.
“I would suggest not increasing the salary. In fact, I’m proposing to reduce the city council’s stipend to zero,” Wu said. “I think, first of all, if someone relies on the stipend to survive—adding $1,600 wouldn’t be enough to feed a family anyway.”
Councilmember Jorge Herrera Avila disagreed with Wu’s proposal.
“If you do decrease the compensation, I think it will make it harder for people like me who have a newborn,” Avila said. “For someone who’s not employed, wanting to run for council can be a challenging endeavor. When I received the stipend, I didn’t do it for the money, but it does help a lot. Unfortunately, I’m not in a situation like yours, where you don’t want to be compensated because you’re doing well and are financially stable.”
Mayor Menchaca also disagreed with eliminating the stipend, emphasizing that the goal is to encourage participation from working families.
“I personally disagree with your proposal of zero, the whole point is that this is why it was brought forward as a Senate bill to try to allow a more diverse group and it’s not necessarily about gender or racially but working families or individuals it will not feed a family but it would make it at least a little more comfortable and get more people interested,” Menchaca said.
In other city news, San Gabriel has proclaimed November as Native American Heritage Month and will host its Día de Los Muertos celebration Friday at 5:30 pm at the Mission Playhouse.
The next City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, November 18.
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