Idea for LR exec pay hits a nerve

Police: City said cash short in ’15

Little Rock’s police union is blasting one city director for proposing a citizens committee to evaluate the pay of top executives.

Ward 4 Director Brad Cazort has said he thinks City Manager Bruce Moore should be better compensated for his expansive job responsibilities. Moore makes $186,443 a year.

A proposal from Cazort that is to be voted on Tuesday by the city Board of Directors would create a committee to make a recommendation on the salaries of Moore, the city attorney, the mayor and board members.

The Little Rock Fraternal Order of Police — the city’s police union — is upset at the possibility of raising executives’ pay because Moore told the group that he couldn’t find money for employee raises in 2015. Moore and the board did approve bonuses for employees that year, and employees received raises this year.

The union posted the following statement on its Facebook page Thursday, along with an Arkansas Democrat-Gazette article about Cazort’s recommendation:

“So Mr. Cozart, you were quick to turn down police

officers for raises last year when a solution was presented to you! Now you want to raise the City Manager’s pay! Come on man! Here’s a novel idea, how about you quit wasting tax payers money!”

When reached Friday, Cazort said he didn’t have a response for the group, which he said is entitled to its opinion.

Cazort did support extra pay for police officers and other employees when the 2015 bonuses were being considered. He made a motion to review sales tax revenue midyear to see if the city could afford to give another round of bonuses to employees or retroactively give raises.

The Fraternal Order of Police hired an outside auditor to evaluate the city’s Fleet Services Department last year to look for inefficiencies that, if corrected, could pay for raises. The auditor said he found mismanagement in the department, but his report never pointed to specific dollar savings.

Moore hadn’t responded by Friday to several emails and phone messages left with his office this week seeking comment on the proposed citizen’s committee.

In 2014 and 2015, Moore said it was difficult to find permanent funds to add to the budget to give employee raises and that the money just wasn’t there for 2015 raises.

If a committee is created and recommends raises for Moore and other leaders, and if that recommendation is enacted by the city Board of Directors, Cazort’s ordinance would have the raises take effect immediately.

Moore didn’t respond to the question of how he would find the money to do that.

The situation would be different from finding the money to pay for employee salaries, however.

A 1 percent raise for employees in 2015 was estimated to cost more than $1.5 million, whereas total recommended increases for the officials in Cazort’s ordinance are likely to cost less — in the hundreds of thousands of dollars.

Still, some Little Rock police officers aren’t happy with the notion.

Police Officer Charles Starratt, commented on the Fraternal Order of Police’s Facebook post saying, “Funny how they find monies for themselves, When do we stand our ground?”

The group’s account replied, “WE STAND NOW!”

The account is run by current union president Tommy Hudson, a homicide detective who is on deferred retirement. Both officers make $60,205 a year.

When reached by phone Friday, Hudson said the situation “just irritates us.”

“I wish they would have put as much effort into taking care of all city employees this last year as [Cazort] is trying to take care of Bruce Moore right now,” Hudson said. “If it’s going to take the FOP to spend money to hold Bruce Moore and the Finance Department and the Board of Directors accountable, then we are ready to spend the money.”

Hudson was referring to the possibility of hiring an accountant to audit more city departments to look for inefficiencies and wasteful spending.

A review by the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette of five other Southern cities with similar populations as Little Rock that have city manager positions, or comparable

positions, found that Moore ranks third in highest pay. The cities reviewed were Amarillo, Texas; Augusta, Ga.; Columbus, Ga.; Irving, Texas; and Shreveport.

The two cities that paid their city managers more — Amarillo and Irving, about $250,000 each — had parttime mayors making $5,200 and $14,400, respectively.

Little Rock’s mayor is full time and makes $160,000. It’s the only city in Arkansas with a city-manager form of government that has both a city manager and a full-time mayor.

A state law says a full-time mayor’s pay must be “comparable” to the city manager’s pay. That means if the board increases Moore’s pay substantially, it is at risk of violating the law if Little Rock Mayor Mark Stodola’s pay isn’t increased also.

“I understand the situation, and the state law is what the state law is,” Cazort said. “I can’t help that. I do think that given the respon-

sibilities we stick on our city manager, that [his pay] needs to be looked at. Obviously, if something is changed there, because of the state law, there will be consequences down the line.”

Cazort said he came up with the idea of a committee to evaluate the pay of Moore and others after reading a Democrat-Gazette article that pointed out that top leaders of the city’s airport, wastewater and water agencies make more money than Moore.

Ron Mathieu, executive director of Bill and Hillary Clinton

National Airport/Adams Field, makes more than anyone else in area government. His salary was increased this year to $215,922 — not counting benefits and a $40,000 bonus.

“I don’t begrudge anybody or the salary that they’re making, but I’m sorry, the head of the airport, the head of water, the head of wastewater — those job responsibilities do not hold a candle to what we ask of our city manager. And his pay should be commensurate with his responsibilities,” Cazort said previously.