Hall: Supervisors’ pay limits candidates

County officials from multiple departments made the case to the Board of Supervisors that they deserve pay raises. 

Among them are Jones County Sheriff Greg Graver, Jones County Engineer Derek Snead and Treasurer Sheri Jones. Supervisor Darrick Hall also initiated a discussion regarding the yearly pay for each member of the board of supervisors at a recent budget meeting. Hall said the board’s salary limits the number of the folks who can make serving on the board financially feasible. 

Each member of the five-person Jones County Board of Supervisors makes $35,589 annually. Of Iowa’s 99 counties, their salary is ranked 73rd. Jones County Auditor Whitney Hein noted that Jones County is the 29th most-populous county in Iowa, and in a comparison of the five counties ahead of Jones and below Jones in the population rankings, Jones County supervisors make the lowest by at least $3,500. 

“Washington County, which is two population ranks above, they have a five-person board and they are getting paid $51,570, and Plymouth, which is five steps above, is getting paid $39,330,” Hein said.

Hein noted that some counties have three-person boards, and those typically carry higher annual salaries since the money isn’t being divvied up as much. 

Supervisor Jeff Swisher asked Hein what the Jones County Supervisors salary would need to be if it were ranked 29th. 

“Jackson County is 29th (in salary) and they make $44,879. But they are a three-member board,” Hein said.  

Hall believes the Jones County Supervisors’ salary directly limits the pool of folks capable of devoting the time and energy necessary to serve on the board while also emphasizing the financial implications of a raise.

“You need to be retired (to have time),” Hall said. “I am in a unique situation where I am self-employed. I work full-time for a farming operation that allows me to make this work, and they work with me. I’m not here because of the (salary), but to make it work for other people and residents of Jones County, (a raise) is something to consider long term.”

Hall said the difference shouldn’t necessarily be made up in one year, but it’s something he believes should be considered for the long-term well-being of the county. 

“There’s a time commitment (to being a supervisor. It’s time away from family and stuff. Which, yes, is very much our own choice (to participate) … I want to be fiscally responsible and conservative, and I think we have been. But (the current salary) doesn’t attract the best and the brightest.”

Supervisor Jeff Swisher agreed. 

“(The salary) eliminates people from taking this job,” Swisher said. “If you need other income to survive, this won’t work. No job will let you get off on Tuesdays and go to meetings. That’s why you have old, retired people running for the board.”

Each supervisor, in addition to a 1-2 hour meeting each Tuesday morning, serves on multiple committees and boards that take place during the day as well as in the evenings. 

“To add to that, very seldom do you go somewhere that someone doesn’t bring something up, like county issues. That’s just part of it,” said Supervisor Joe Oswald, the board chair. 

Other raise requests

Other department heads discussed raises within their departments during recent budget discussions with the Supervisors. 

Last year, following the disbandment of the county’s compensation board, the county used salary data from all Iowa counties in setting department head salaries and worked to keep salary ranks in line with counties near Jones in population, Oswald said, adding that he believes this was an effective metric. Oftentimes a department head’s salary impacts of each subordinate’s salary as well. 

Among county department heads seeking raises was Engineer Derek Snead, who said his ranking among his peers across the state is not in line with Jones County’s population ranking. 

Snead’s salary, which in the current fiscal year is $146,942, is ranked 39th among engineers in Iowa, according to Iowa Association of Counties data. 

He touted the work he and employees in the Jones County Secondary Roads department have done over the past decade, including securing millions in grant funding for various projects. 

“It’s a difficult time for county engineers all around,” Snead said. “If you talk to other counties that are in need (of one), they are difficult to come by. You go to smaller counties, and they can’t find them either. I feel strongly that an engineer is an investment into the county.”

County Attorney Kristofer Lyons, whose salary of $142,584 puts him 26th in the state, said he wanted to advocate for a raise for Kelly Dodge, who works in the attorney’s office and does a bit of everything, Lyons said. 

“My preference would be a 5-6% (raise) because she deserves it,” Lyons said. “Her position is unique in the county because of all she does.”

Lyons said Dodge’s duties include coordinating evidence and working with police officers and sheriff’s deputies daily. 

He also said he sees a need for a part-time attorney to join his office.

“The work is there,” Lyons said.

Jones County Recorder Sheri Jones said she appreciates where her salary falls in line compared to other county recorders in Iowa ($84,451, 28th overall) but would like to see the recorder’s salary closer to the county treasurer ($86,718, 25th) and auditor ($89,215, 30th) in Jones County. 

“I think people believe there is a hierarchy because there is a difference in pay, but no one is any less important in our job and what the (Iowa) code says we do,” Jones said. “We all help citizens, and I think my office does this well.”

Jones County Auditor Whitney Hein also addressed her salary and offered some advice to the Supervisors. 

“Out of the 10 comparables, six make more than I do, and the closest one is like $2,200 more than me,” Hein said, adding that she believes the supervisors should consider each office’s duties in a vacuum and not compare them to other offices within the courthouse. 

“(That) has become a pet peeve of mine,” Hein told the Supervisors. “It’s like we are comparing all county employees, but everyone has individual jobs and duties, and that is how they should be looked at … That’s my request of you guys is to keep that in mind when looking at everyone’s salaries.”

The Supervisors will continue working on salaries and other aspects of the county’s budget in the coming weeks.