Aurora finance committee continues review of elected officials’ compensation; requests more data

The Finance Committee on Aug. 29 held a substantive discussion about possible adjustments to mayoral and aldermanic compensation under the Local Government Officer Compensation Act but did not adopt a recommendation.

Alex Voigt from the mayor’s office and HR staff shared an updated compensation survey and packet. Committee members debated whether to treat alderman positions as part‑time or full‑time roles, how meeting stipends should be counted in annual pay comparisons and whether a cost‑of‑living adjustment (COLA) or lump‑sum catch‑up better addresses recent inflation. Some members favored a moderate across‑the‑board increase (members discussed 3%–4% ranges for aldermen) while others cautioned about perception and preferred smaller COLA increases for mayors.

HR staff said including meeting stipends in annual pay caused the alderman percentile shown to rise from 44% to 54% in the updated packet; committee members asked staff to verify and supply per‑meeting stipend comparisons across peer cities and to show dollar amounts (not just percentiles). The group did not vote and agreed to revisit the item after staff returns with clarified data and with the Oct. timeline for final action in place.

What’s next: HR will provide clarified compensation tables (dollar amounts and percentile calculations, stipend comparators), and the committee will reconvene to consider a motion to forward recommendations to the council.