AUBURN — Androscoggin County’s elected officials may not get their recently approved hazard pay bonus.
The chairwoman of the county’s Budget Committee claims that commissioners’ decision earlier this week to award $5,000 hazard pay bonuses to elected officials, who were included with all full-time county employees for work during the pandemic, violates the county charter.
The bonuses are being paid with American Rescue Plan Act funds from the federal government for financial relief suffered during the COVID-19 pandemic. States, counties and municipalities are all receiving relief funds. Maine’s 16 counties were awarded $260 million, with Androscoggin County set to receive $20 million.
Some private companies and local governments across the country have provided their essential workers with hazard pay.
The Androscoggin County Commission did that at Wednesday’s meeting, voting to spend $557,500 to give all fulltime employees a one-time $5,000 bonus. Part-time employees will receive a prorated amount if they had worked 400 hours.
The county, however, included its three elected officials in that grouping — Androscoggin County Sheriff Eric Samson, Register of Probate Thomas Reynolds and Judge of Probate Michael Dubois.
County commissioners are not receiving any hazard pay bonus.
Budget Committee Chairwoman Alicia Rea of Lewiston praised the commissioners for attempting to compensate their employees for working through the pandemic, but insisted it conflicts with Section 3.7 of the charter covering compensation.
According to the charter, “Salaries and benefits of all County elected officials shall be recommended by the Board and approved by a majority plus one vote of the full Budget Committee. Said salary shall constitute full compensation for all services. Reimbursement for reasonable expenses incurred in performance of the officials’ duties may be allowed upon formal review and approval by the Board. No increase in the salaries or the expansion of benefits of elected officials is effective without the approval of a majority plus one vote of the full Budget Committee.”
Rea claims the hazard pay is an increase in salary and expansion of benefits for the elected officials.
“The Budget Committee would need to weigh in on the additional compensation for elected officials, prior to this payment being made,” Rea said. “I recognize this has been an incredibly difficult year in which to run the county and do appreciate the work of all employees, including elected (officials), but the Charter is clear on the process for providing additional compensation.”
“While it could be argued that a one-time bonus or hazard pay is not changing compensation, the outcome of following that rhetoric would be allowing for extra pay or compensation at any time, effectively circumventing the charter,” Rea added.
Budget Committee member Kiernan Majerus-Collins of Lewiston expressed a stronger view, saying “politicians” should not receive compensation for work during the pandemic.
“This is a clear violation of the county charter — any increase in compensation for elected officials must go before the Budget Committee, and as a Budget Committee member, I would never approve $5,000 bonuses for elected officials,” he said. “If the County Commission wants to have a real conversation about how much our politicians get paid, I welcome it, but trying to slip them some money without going through the proper channels is unlawful and unacceptable.”
Sally Christner of Turner, the chairwoman of the county commission, said she was seeking clarification on the matter. She said she had two main questions — could hazard pay be considered part of their salaries, and are rescue funds part of the budgetary process.
“We are not attempting to side step the Budget Committee,” Christner said. “We didn’t consider this part of their salaries.”
During the meeting when the topic was up for discussion, Commissioner Isaiah Lary of Wales attempted to exclude elected officials and County Administrator Larry Post from receiving the hazard pay, but his amendment died because none of the other six commissioners would second it. Lary never mentioned the charter violation as a reason for offering the amendment.
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