Council debates raising school board pay; amendment to $800 proposed

Murfreesboro City Council debated a proposed ordinance to revise school board member compensation during its May 23 meeting.

Staff presented an ordinance that would replace the current per-meeting payments with a flat $400 per month for board members and an additional $100 per month for the board chair. Councilmembers questioned whether the proposed $400 adequately compensated the board, citing time demands such as multi-hour budget reviews and attendance at state school board meetings.

Speakers compared local practice and neighboring Rutherford County’s board pay, which was cited in the meeting as $1,250 per month. Several councilmembers said a larger increase was appropriate; one councilmember floated $800 per month as an alternative and a motion was made to amend the ordinance to that amount.

Council called for a roll call vote on ordinance 24-019 as amended. The transcript records the motion, second and roll call being called but does not include the result of the vote or the final tally.

Because the transcript excerpt does not include the outcome, this report does not state whether the amendment or the ordinance passed.