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The next mayor of Cody stands to be paid a bit better than the current officeholder.
At its Tuesday night meeting, the Cody City Council backed an ordinance that would raise the mayor’s …
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The next mayor of Cody stands to be paid a bit better than the current officeholder.
At its Tuesday night meeting, the Cody City Council backed an ordinance that would raise the mayor’s annual salary to $30,000 — up from the current rate of $24,000. If the proposal passes the council two more times, the change would take effect in January, when a new mayor is sworn into office.
Council members informally decided to bump the pay months ago, as they included funding for the raise within the city’s budget for the July 1, 2024 to June 30, 2025 fiscal year. However, the ordinance must be amended to make the increase official.
Councilwoman Lee Ann Reiter — who is running for mayor against Cody restaurateur Chuck Struemke — abstained from the vote because of her interest in the position.
The salary was last adjusted in 2009, and Councilman Don Shreve cited that lull in supporting a bump.
“I believe that the mayor position, if done as it should be done, is easily a $30,000-a-year job,” Shreve said.
For example, he said Cody Mayor Matt Hall has needed to make multiple trips to Cheyenne to secure state funding for city projects — and Hall missed Tuesday’s meeting because he was helping with efforts to secure additional commercial air service at the Cody airport. Those are the kinds of mayoral duties that the general public is unaware of, Shreve said, submitting that the role “is well worth the $30,000.”
Cody council members, meanwhile, continue to receive $100 per meeting. They make a bit less than their counterparts on the Powell City Council, who earn $110 a meeting. In contrast, Powell’s mayor receives a significantly more modest salary than Cody’s, earning $13,200 a year.
State law requires county governments to formally set their elected officials’ salaries every four years, but there is no such requirement for municipalities. The law also says that elected officials’ pay cannot be changed during the person’s term in office.
The Cody council will likely take up the mayoral pay ordinance at its next meeting for the second of three readings.
