BY KAMERYN GRIESSER, HALEY MCLEOD & ZACHARIA WASHINGTON
Liberty Hill council cuts mayor salary by 55% After council’s unanimous decision March 27, Lib- erty Hill’s mayor will now receive a yearly stipend of $18,000—a 55% reduction from the previous annual salary of $40,000. “I worry that if you have a large amount of compensation someone might not be doing it for the right reasons, potentially,” council member Amanda Young said at the March 27 meeting. How we got here The last time Liberty Hill City Council reviewed and approved council compensation was in Decem- ber 2020, according to city documents. Per the December 2020 city ordinance, council members elected during or after the May 2 general election received $12,000 per year, while mayors elected on or after that date earned $40,000 per year. City staff recommended council review compensation again ahead of the May 4 election.
Liberty Hill utility rate increases in effect An approximately 8% increase to Liberty Hill utility customers’ rates went into effect March 26, raising minimum charges to $41.05 and $62.58 for water and wastewater, respectively. How we got here The utility rate adjustments come from the city’s 2018 Water and Wastewater Rate Study, which recommended rate increases every year for a five-year period. The first set of recommended utility rates from the study went into effect April 2019. Until last year, utility rates were not raised or adjusted, which caused the city to lose revenue, officials said. Council approved the first rate increases since 2019 in late August, which went into effect in October and are the current rates.
What’s the pay?
Position
Yearly stipend
Council member
$12,000
Mayor (prior to March 27) $40,000
Mayor (as of March 27)
$18,000
SOURCE: CITY OF LIBERTY HILL/COMMUNITY IMPACT
A majority of the council members agreed the mayor may be tasked with more duties; however, council members have similar responsibilities. Because of this, council reduced the mayor’s salary to be more consistent with the annual stipend for council members. Acting mayor Crystal Mancilla recused herself from the vote. “I know that the mayor has more responsibility from a time standpoint ... because they’re sort of the figurehead of the city and they need to show up,” council member Angela Jones said. “But $40,000 is way too high, in my opinion.”
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