Relating to the composition and procedures of county compensation boards

This bill relates to the composition and procedures of county compensation boards. Under current law, a county compensation board is composed of seven members who serve four-year, staggered terms. Two of the members are appointed by the county board of supervisors and one member is appointed by each of the county auditor, the county attorney, the county recorder, the county treasurer, and the county sheriff. The county compensation board reviews the compensation paid to comparable officers in other counties of this state, other states, private enterprise, and the federal government. A county compensation board submits a recommended compensation schedule to the board of supervisors, who may approve a higher salary increase or reduce the amount of the recommended salary increase by an equal amount for each elected county officer. Under the bill, a county compensation board is composed of two members of the board of supervisors who serve two-year, staggered terms and rotate with the other members of the board of supervisors; two members who are residents of the county who serve two-year terms and are appointed by the members of the board of supervisors who are serving on the county compensation board at the time of the appointment; and three members determined by a rotation of the county attorney, county auditor, county recorder, county sheriff, and county treasurer as provided in the bill. The bill requires the county compensation board to meet at least twice before submitting a final recommended compensation schedule to the board of supervisors. One meeting must be a public hearing. The county compensation board shall review the compensation paid to three comparable officers in other counties of this state, three comparable officers in other states, and three comparable officers in private enterprise. The county compensation board cannot recommend a salary for any elected county officer that is lower than the salary of the person holding the office in the year immediately preceding the most recent election. The bill requires the board of supervisors to review and adopt the recommended compensation schedule without alteration.