Iola city employees will get a pay raise in 2023 to keep up with inflation rates.
City Council members voted unanimously Monday for the 8.7% pay hike, which conforms with the Consumer Price Index, which will cost the city about $92,000 more in salaries next year.
City Administrator Matt Rehder told Council members the city can absorb the higher salaries, in part because anticipated insurance premium hikes came in lower than anticipated.
While there are still some funding gaps, each department in the city will adjust their budgets accordingly to afford the pay raises, Rehder said.
Since 2004, the city has tied its cost-of-living adjustments with the CPI, which also is used by the Social Security Administration to dictate how benefits are calculated each year.
Last year’s COLA adjustment was 5.9%.
Of note, the adjustments are separate from the city’s pay scale, which gives annual raises based on longevity and promotions within their departments.
IOLA will beef up its incentives for those who take part in the city’s Neighborhood Revitalization Plan.
The plan is offered to residential, commercial or industrial property owners who increase the appraised values of their properties by at least $5,000.
If they do, the owners receive a refund equal to the difference in what they paid in taxes with the more valuable property.
With Rehder’s encouragement, the plan now offers a full 100% rebate for those improvements, minus a small percentage given to Allen County to cover administrative costs.
The previous incentives offered 100% rebates for the first six years, then reducing that with 20% increments in years 7-10.
The revamped plan now will go to Allen County, Allen Community College and USD 257 for ratification because of the interlocal agreement among the entities.
The new plan, which runs through 2027, was ratified with a 7-1 vote, with Councilman Carl Slaugh opposed.
Slaugh said he favored keeping the existing incentives in place.
OCTOBER has been Domestic Violence Awareness Month in Iola.
Mayor Steve French read the proclamation at the urging of Hope Unlimited, a local agency that serves victims of domestic violence or sexual assault.
