SLO County supervisors seeking more than 20% pay increase

January 22, 2023

BY KAREN VELIE

Less than a year after refusing to give union represented staffers raises of more than 3% a year, the San Luis Obispo County Board of Supervisors is set to raise their own salaries by 20.8% on Tuesday in an attempt to stay on track with other unrepresented employees, according to the board’s agenda.

During a time two county supervisors — Bruce Gibson and Adam Hill — were having undisclosed romantic relationships with their legislative aides, they pushed to raise their assistants’ salaries. Now, the county is seeking to raise the supervisors’ pay in order to insure a 25% difference in salaries between supervisors and aides.

  • Effective April 16, 2023: increase the annual salary from $90,417.60 to $103,979.20
  • Effective June 25, 2023: increase the annual salary from $103,979.20 to $106,597.20
  • Effective June 23, 2024: increase the annual salary from $106,597.20 to $109,241.60

“Subsequent to June 23, 2024, members of the Board of Supervisors shall receive the same percentage increase to their annual salary that is applied to the annual salary of the legislative assistant classification,” according to county documents. “This increase shall also be applied at the same time the increase is applied to the legislative assistant classification.”

After battling against giving line-level staffers raises of more than 3% a year, in June 2022 the SLO County Board of Supervisors approved raises of up to 23% for county administrators and management staff.

The approved raises for the county’s 2,400 employees represented by unions was slated to cost the county $4,620,091 in 2022 and $5,253,091 in 2023. During the same time, the board voted to increase pay for the county’s 500 administrators, officials and management staffers at an estimated cost of $5,199,000 in 2022 and $9,796,000 in 2023.

The SLO County Board of Supervisors is scheduled to vote on increasing their salaries and benefits on Jan. 24.


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The 2020 San Luis Obispo County monthly median income is $2,814 ($33,765 divided by 12).


You likely are too low by a wide margin according to the Census Bureau data I found when I fact-checked your numbers.


According to the United States Census Bureau, 2021 data, the 2017 to 2021 averaged annual median household income (in 2021 dollars) in San Luis Obispo County was $82,514. Annual per capita income averaged over the same period, in 2021 dollars, was $41,407.


According to deptofnumbers.com website, the Census ACS-1 annual median household income in SLO County was $80,615 in 2021. The ACS 1-year data shows the median family income in SLO County was $100,804 for 2021. And the annual median per capita income was $42,831 in 2021.


Per the U.S. Census ACS 1-year survey data, the per capita median annual income in SLO County for 2021 was $42,831 ($3,569 per month). Median annual household income was $80,615, and the median annual family income was $100,804 for 2021 in SLO County.


Adam Hill died on August 6th 2020. Speaking as a liberal he was a loathsome elected official. It is hard to say something good about the man during his time as a “public servant”, but for god’s sake how many times do you need to drive over the top of his dead corpse?

This issue, handing out unnecessary raises in 2023, is not Adam Hill’s doing yet CCN feels compelled to rev up the bus for one more pass over the top of a dead man. I would prefer that these public servants work for free, but they like every other Administrative group, feel compelled to give themselves the same raise that a Union worker achieves through collective bargaining. It is rather pathetic. Their need to keep a pay gap between themselves and the “staff” is not unique. The PER’s system is out of whack, not because of the average public employee, but because every administer gives themselves a pay raise every time they adjust the COLA for Joe Six pack. Retirement based on your 3 highest earning years is absolutely ridiculous. It isn’t the guy in the transportation pool dude that skews the system to the point of breaking it, it is the Administrative state that does this. Yet, it is the unionized worker who is blamed for a broken system.

Let the dead Rest In Peace, and spend some time explaining the the general public why our system is broken. A supervisor’s lamentable indiscretion in years past is not to blame here and not even worth noting by CCN when it relates to reporting on this matter.


We get it. You didn’t like Adam. Neither did I. Move on, and let him go. Stick to reporting pertinent facts and inform us.


Sorry, but Adam Hill set the bar on many levels. Unfortunately, that bar was set very low, and we’re still paying for it. I’m sure there are many who were done wrong purposely by Hill that absolutely don’t feel as you do. The late Adam Hill made his bed what it is. CCN nor anyone else should not stop calling out what he did. Again, he set that below par bar that guides Gibson.


I save my ire for the living, and let leave it to my maker to sort it out for the dead. Please continue to whack away. It obviously provides you some joy.


I take no joy in watching someone destroy their lives that leads to their death. To even insinuate that is wacked.

The late Adan Hill made some very poor choices that led to his demise. It should be an example to others to the dangers of greed for power and control that drives you. I find it telling how so many have “selective” ire when it comes to morality and decency.


The avarice and greed of the SLO County Board of Supervisors is the height of hypocrisy.


This is unbelievable!


I for one will vote against any of them who vote FOR the raise. Irrespective of party or where they stand on any issue. Vote to give yourself a 20 percent raise, loose my vote.


We’re here from the government, and we’re here to help!


Just wrong.


Wish I could vote to raise my salary.


Pond scum


It always amazes me how politicians can pass rules and regulations that impact everyone’s wallet, but then they can go ahead and get raises to match any increases in cost to themselves. Too bad the rest of us are not able to do that!


Never forget politicians, all politicians care about self, donors, and party. Not us.


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