Illinois Valley News

Last year, the Josephine County Budget Committee approved a raise for Sheriff Gil Gilbertson, which he declined.

And it looks as though Gilbertson might have to take the same action again this year, if the Budget Committee follows the recommendations of the Elected Official Compensation Committee.

The committee is charged with making recommendations to the Budget Committee about salary and benefit levels for the county“s elected officials, and has an April 29 deadline to do so. But during its Thursday, April 8 meeting at the courthouse in Grants Pass, the committee finalized those recommendations.

In order to come up with its figures, the committee compared the compensation of Josephine County elected officials with their counterparts in eight other counties statewide. The data was provided by the Association of Oregon Counties, and included the salaries of officials in Benton, Coos, Douglas, Klamath, Linn, Polk, Umatilla and Yamhill counties.

Chairman Dick Cottrill stated that District Attorney Stephen Campbell and Gilbertson are the only local officials whose salaries are more than 3 percent different from similar officials.

Committee member Jeff Wolf said that the issue surrounding Gilbertson“s compensation is “complicated.“ Wolf said that under state law, the sheriff must be the highest paid person in his or her department.

Cottrill asked Sarah Moye, a committee member and Josephine County Human Resources director, if the county still is in compliance with that state law.

Moye responded that Undersheriff Don Fasching is not currently paid more than Gilbertson, but that the “potential is there.“

Committee member Karen Lange, who works as the human resources director for the city of Grants Pass, said that the sheriffs in Benton, Coos, Linn and Klamath counties received pay raises last year. The sheriffs in Polk and Douglas counties saw no change in their salaries, Lange said, and the Yamhill County sheriff“s salary went down by $7,000.

Lange said that compared to other sheriffs, Gilbertson“s pay was 1.81 percent lower last year and 3.81 percent lower this year. She said that Gilbertson is making “considerably less“ than the rest of Josephine County“s elected officials. That disparity is why the committee recommended a raise for Gilbertson last year, Lange said.

The salaries of Gilbertson and Fasching are 2 percent apart now, Lange said, adding that they should have “at least“ a 5 percent difference.

Cottrill recommended a 2 percent adjustment for Gilbertson in recognition of the state law regarding sheriff compensation.

Commissioner Sandi Cassanelli was present, and asked to comment on the matter. She stormed out of the room after being denied, claiming it was unfair, as Legal Counsel Steve Rich had been allowed to make a remark.

Also addressed was the compensation for county surveyor Peter Allen.

Moye said that most counties have full-time surveyors, and at least one pays theirs at an hourly rate. Allen spends around 20 hours per month performing administrative functions at the county surveyor“s office, Moye said.

Since Allen owns his own private surveying business, Moye said, he creates an invoice for the work he does for the county and runs it through his company. Moye suggested setting an hour rate for Allen“s services to the county so he can “bill as needed.“

Cottrill said that the committee should recommend setting a yearly base pay of $7,680 for Allen, with a rate of $32 per hour. Moye said that would put Allen onto the county“s payroll, which she said would be “more appropriate“ than the current arrangement.

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