Newton Mayor To Officially Veto Council Proposal To Raise Pay

NEWTON, MA — If ever there was a time to take a trip to Newton City Hall to watch civics in action, Monday may be it. During the full city council meeting the council will discuss whether elected officials - including themselves - should get raises, and whether they should override her planned veto.

This is the first time that Mayor Ruthanne Fuller will have vetoed an order that the council has passed. The council has the power to override her veto.

The last veto was in 1999 by Mayor David Cohen on a change to the ordinances that would have changed the definition of a commercial vehicle, according to Newton City Clerk David Olson, who has been clerk since 2006.

"A very quick scan of the records indicates that the... Mayor had concerns about the wording. The Board of Aldermen did not override his veto, but docketed a new item to address his concerns," Olson said in an email to Patch.

The city council has been talking about the possibility of raising salaries for elected officials for months, after putting together a special commission to make recommendations. It's been nearly two decades since they last saw raises. Last month, the council voted to give the elected officials - city council members, school committee members and the mayor - raises higher than the special commission recommended.

It wasn't a universally popular move. The process was criticized by the League of Women Voters and some members of the commission itself. When the vote got to the mayor's desk she indicated her intent was to veto it.

According to the city council agenda, they will meet at 7:45 pm to discuss its committees' recommendations on the following items:

#208-19 Consideration of the recommendations of the special Blue Ribbon Commission.
208-19 (A) Mayor Compensation $155,000.00.
208-19 (B) City Council Compensation $15,500.00.
208-19 (C) School Committee Compensation $7,750.00.
VETO BY HER HONOR THE MAYOR - On September 26, 2019, in accordance with the provisions of Section 3-8 of the Newton City Charter entitled Adoption of Measures; Mayor's Veto., her Honor the Mayor submitting her veto of City Ordinance #208-19(A)(B) & (C) adopted by the City Council on September 16, 2019.

Read more:

• Newton Mayor To Veto City Council Raise Proposal
• Newton City Council Votes To Give Themselves Raises (Sept. 17)
• Newton Commission Asks If City Councilors Should Be Paid More
• Opinion: Say NO to Newton Politician Pay Raises
• Commission Recommends Newton City Council Vote Themselves Raises
• League Of Women Voters Criticizes Newton Council's Potential Raises

Patch reporter Jenna Fisher can be reached at Jenna.Fisher@patch.com or by calling 617-942-0474. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram (@ReporterJenna).