City Council President John Weingardt presented data to the Finance Committee Wednesday night on how other cities compensate elected officials.  Fishers City Council members are paid $12,000 a year with no fringe benefits.  Weingardt presented a survey of other city and county council members, and the average total compensation for council members (including both salaries and fringe benefits) showed $38,699 a year.  The survey included council members from Bloomington, Anderson, Carmel, Noblesville, Hamilton County and Parma, Ohio.  The possible changes in council member compensation are to be discussed by the full city council at an August 15th work session.  Council member compensation in Fishers was last changed by the town council in 2000.

Finance Committee Chairman Eric Moeller said the process is aimed at bringing council compensation into line with other elected officials in Fishers’ transition from a town to a city.

The Finance Committee will begin reviewing the mayor’s 2017 budget proposals at a special meeting on August 17th.  City Controller Oscar Gutierrez told the council panel more special budget meetings would likely need to be scheduled in fashioning the city’s 2017 spending plan.  Gutierrez emphasized that the city’s 2017 budget must be approved at the City Council session in October.