Covington council adopts ordinance to raise future council pay, effective 2027

The Covington City Council adopted an ordinance to increase future council compensation, voting on Jan. 13 to make the change effective July 1, 2027.

Councilman Inman, who introduced the matter during a public hearing, said the proposal is intended to update compensation that has been changed only a few times since the 1970s and stressed the increase would apply to the next elected council rather than sitting members. He argued that modern duties — including social media, traffic oversight and greater budgetary responsibilities — demand more time and make competitive compensation necessary to attract qualified candidates.

Inman said, "This would not be a raise for this council. This would not take effect until the next council," and described the change as an effort to bring compensation more in line with historical values adjusted for inflation.

Mayor Mark Johnson spoke in support, saying: "I also believe that it is important that if you want quality people on the council, that you do have to give them some sort of... pay raise." The ordinance was then moved and seconded and the council held a roll-call vote; the transcript records one 'No' vote from Councilman Bushnell and recorded 'Yes' votes from other members present, producing a majority in favor.

The transcript does not specify the dollar amounts or the exact new compensation schedule; the ordinance is listed in the meeting as 20-25-12-01 and the effective date given in the hearing was July 1, 2027. No amendment to the amount was recorded in the public portion of the meeting.

Because the increase applies to a future council, the immediate budgetary impact for the current fiscal year was not described during the meeting. The council moved on to other business following the vote; the next regular meeting is Feb. 3.