Lee Pulaski, lpulaski@shawanoleader.com
Pay hikes for the next Shawano County sheriff, coroner and clerk of courts received County Board approval Wednesday.
The resolutions for the coroner and clerk of courts passed unanimously, but some supervisors balked at increasing the sheriff’s pay. All three posts are up for election in November, and, by law, any increases have to be approved before the election cycle starts.
The positions are now held by Randy Wright, sheriff; Susan Krueger, clerk of courts; and Mike Jesse, coroner.
The board approved about a 5 percent increase for the clerk of courts for 2015, plus 1 percent increases annually from 2016-2018. The coroner, meanwhile, will get $5 more per call beginning in 2015, with no increases planned beyond that.
Supervisors rejected a proposal to increase the sheriff’s pay 1 percent in 2015 15-12, but voted 16-11 to grant 1 percent increases annually from 2016-2018.
Some on the board questioned why the the sheriff would not get an increase next year.
“If you look at other counties, he is underpaid compared to them,” Supervisor Ray Faehling said.
County Board Chairman Jerry Erdmann, who sits on both the Administrative and Finance committees, which sponsored the pay resolutions, said an incident in 2013 prompted the one-year freeze.
In March, $1,000 in jail bond money went missing. The money has never been recovered, but Wright has said stricter measures about transferring bond money from the jail to the courthouse have been implemented.
“We have outstanding issues that have not been reconciled yet,” Erdmann said. “We have missing money. We have to hold somebody accountable.”
Supervisor Steve Gueths pointed out that the salaries are for the next elected term, and there is no guarantee Wright will be in office next year.
“I find it a little disturbing that you’re using the missing money or anything else to set the wages for an elected official in 2015,” Gueths said.
Supervisor Mike McClelland, chairman for the Public Safety Committee, noted his committee had recommended no pay increase for the sheriff for the next four years.
Supervisor Dennis Knaak argued that limiting pay increases puts Shawano County at a disadvantage compared with other counties, and the pay might not draw the best candidates.
“We’re just going backwards,” Knaak said.
The clerk of courts will get a $2,907 raise in 2015, to bring the salary up to $57,000 — comparable to what the county clerk, register of deeds and treasurer are expected to earn.
According to Corporation Counsel Tony Kordus, Krueger is one of the lowest paid clerk of courts in northeast Wisconsin, and even the large hike in 2015 will not close much of that gap.
The coroner will receive $90 per call beginning in 2015, a $5 increase from this year. According to county documents, the coroner went on 571 calls in 2013, so the pay in 2015 could be about $50,000.