Last year – on January 1, 2024 – a section of the California Government Code that details allowable salaries for non-charter cities like Milpitas was amended.
Part of the amendment stated that for cities with a population of between 75,000 and 150,000 people, Councilmembers may receive $1,900 per month, or $22,800 per year. Another part stated that their salaries can increase by either 5% or an amount equal to inflation annually, whichever is greater.
According to the most recent data in Census.gov, Milpitas’ population is 77,321.
Currently, the Milpitas Mayor makes $1,130.85 per month, or $13,569 per year. The other Milpitas Councilmembers each make $904.37 per month, or $10,852.44 per year.
A City Staff report stated: “On July 10, 2010, the City Council voluntarily voted to reduce the salary of City Councilmembers and the Mayor by approximately 6% due to the economic downturn and scarcity of municipal revenues. On March 8, 2012, the City Council voluntarily voted to further reduce the salary and car allowance of City Councilmembers and the Mayor such that a total 10% reduction took effect beginning December 2012. On December 2, 2014, the Milpitas City Council approved a restoration/increase of City Council salaries to the current amount as further described in this report.”
So for over a decade now, there has been no change in the salaries of Milpitas Mayors/City Councilmembers.
Last night, though, the Milpitas City Council discussed the possibility of raising their salaries. City Staff put together a chart of salaries from surrounding cities to compare…
If the Milpitas City Council votes to raise the salaries, the new salaries would not go into effect until late 2026, after the next election takes place and a new council is seated.
“It [salary] could be a factor on some people running for office. To encourage more people to at least get involved in governance,” said Councilmember Chua during the meeting. “That’s an attraction as well. It might not be a lot, but it helps.”
There’s one more relevant factor. Government Code section 36516.1 also states that the City Council can provide the Mayor with additional compensation beyond their regular base salary for their work on the Council, and that this compensation can be provided immediately without having to wait until the end of 2026.
Yet the Council, including Mayor Montano, agreed that it didn’t seem fair to give the Mayor an extra increase.
If the discussed salary increases are enacted to the maximum of $22,800 for our Milpitas Councilmembers, it will impact the General Fund to the tune of a $74,240 increase (which includes the salaries themselves and ancillary benefits).
At the end of the discussion, the Council agreed for City Staff to go ahead and draft an ordinance for the proposed salary increases.
The Beat will publish updates as things progress.
