Meridian City Hall 

After several months of discussions, the Meridian City Council appears close to an agreement on raising the pay of some city employees. 

In a work session Tuesday, Ward 5 Councilwoman Ty Bell Lindsey proposed a $3 an hour raise for certified police officers and $1 an hour raise for other city employees. The raises only apply to those making less than $55,000 a year.

The total cost, Lindsey said, would be $573,000 for the remaining eight months in the current budget year, and about $859,000 going forward.

Chief Financial Officer Brandye Latimer said the city did have the money currently to fund the raises for the rest of the year, but would need to look at reallocating funds to cover the increased salary costs in future budgets.

Ward 1 Councilman George Thomas said he supported raises for city employees, but questioned the viability of the numbers presented. The figures, he said, were calculated for current employees only. If the city fills any open positions, which is part of the motivation for raising pay, the numbers would grow.

“If we fill unfilled positions, these figures for next year are not accurate,” he said.

Raising police pay is intended as a recruiting tool to attract more officers to bolster the city’s police force. Police Chief Deborah Naylor Young said Tuesday the city has officers and supervisors who’ve worked seven straight days due to staffing shortages and COVID-19 infections within MPD.

While MPD has been recruiting aggressively since Young took over the department in August, the overall force has remained about the same due to more officers leaving Meridian, she said. Young said the raises would also help raise morale within the department. 

Chief Administrative Officer Tim Miller said the figures proposed also did not factor in the 12.5 unfilled positions within the police department the city council voted to unfund in October. The council’s intention for the funds was to be used for raises.

Miller said that money could be used to cover the extra costs of brining new officers on board.

“If it works as a recruiting tool, those funds would help cover new officers,” he said.

Miller also said council members voted to move about $600,000 from unfilled positions to the legislative budget during budget hearings in August. The move allowed the council to support additional charities and non-profits throughout the city.

In future budget years, he said, those funds could be left to help cover the cost of the raises.

“We’ll probably have to pull back on charitable giving next year,” Lindsey said.

Thomas said he wanted more police, and supported raising their pay, he also wanted to make sure other city employees were included. The minimum wage for city employees, he said, is $9 an hour, and some employees are at or near the level where they qualify for food assistance.

“I’m concerned about the people at the bottom,” he said.

With a better understanding of what the city could afford, the council asked cost estimates be drawn up for a $2.50 per hour raise for certified police officers and $1.25 per hour for other city employees. The raises would apply to all city employees except for department heads, which are salaried positions.

The estimate is expected to be included in the council packet for review and discussion at the Feb. 1 council meeting.