County salaries get annual boost
By Donna Comella

The proposed salary increases for certain county officers passed Tuesday without much trouble. In years past, Wayne County Supervisors have faced debate, confrontational employees and even a petition drive against the salaries of some department heads. Not so this year.

The pay hikes, most at 2.6 percent, went through with only two 'no' votes. Voting against the increases were Supervisors Monica Deyo (Marion) and Dave Lyon (Palmyra). Jim Fabino (Lyons) and Carm Pascarella (Rose) were absent.

Deyo said later that her 'no' vote was because of inequities - a reason given by many supervisors who have debated the salaries in previous years. Deyo says she knows of no formula established for the raises, although one has been suggested in earlier debate.

"(The) raises are just not equal across the board," said Deyo.

One of the raises, that for Personnel Officer Peter Stirpe, is for just over 13 percent. The last time supervisors gave a raise that size (then also to Stirpe), there was a citizen 'uprising' and some taxpayers petitioned for a vote on the raises. Since that 1994 incident, raises have, for the most part, ranged from 2 to 4 percent.

Only this handful of county raises is subject to permissive referendum. These few who are appointed or elected for a specific term, can't receive a raise during that term without public comment - a hearing, legal notification, and, finally, permissive referendum.

Click here to view these and other 1999 county salaries.

In other business, the Board:

- Proclaimed appreciation to retiring Social Service Commissioner Rita Otterbein for over 21 years of service. The Board appointed her second-in-command, Phil Gerhart, as Acting Commissioner, effective at close of business last Friday.

- Rejected all bids for a 1981 Harley-Davidson motorcycle. The four bids ranged from $3,000 to $1,451, and the resolution was originally written to accept the $3,000 bid from Leon Waldron of Savannah. But when the matter came to the floor, Public Safety Committee Chair Allan Guerrin (Huron) had changed the resolution to reject all bids. He explained that, at auction, the county could probably come closer to the $3,800 book value of the Model XLH bike.

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