Wouldn't it be awesome to be able to give yourself a pay raise? Just get yourself elected to Bexar County Commissioners Court.
Commissioners on Tuesday voted themselves a four percent pay raise...plus a three percent 'cost of living increase' for each of the next two years.
The Commissioners accepted the recommendation of a Citizens Advisory Committee on Elected Officials' Salaries and Allowances, which was headed by Julie Newman.
"Bexar County is up and coming, and we want to attract the best talent for all of the positions," she said.
It's not like the Commissioners are missing many meals as it is. They currently take home $114,000 a year, plus a generous car allowance. The average annual household income in Bexar County, which frequently includes two earners, is $57,000.
Newman says it is in the taxpayers' best interests to fork over more cash to the Commissioners.
"We want there to be no stepping stones for someone who wants to run for public office who has a family," she said.
Commissioners were in a generous mood with your money, also rubber stamping three percent raises for the County Clerk, the District Clerk and, appropriately, the Tax Assessor-Collector.
Other county officials didn't get a raise, but did get three percent 'cost of living adjustments' for the coming two years.
Some county officials, however, missed the gravy train. County Court at Law Judges and District Court Judges, for example, are maxed out when it comes to the amount of money they can make under state law.
If you're keeping score, the Labor Department says the average private sector employee can expect a raise of about 1.5% this year.
The 3% cost of living increase comes as the inflation rate this year is expected to run about 1.5%.