CHENANGO COUNTY – In a vote favoring an ammendment to a local law that gives pay raises to certain county officers, the 23 elected officials that make up the Chenango County Board of Supervisors have turned down a raise for themselves.

A pay increase for the Board of Supervisors was originally included in a local law that went to vote during the Board’s monthly meeting held last Tuesday. In addition to a proposed pay increase for Board members, the local law – which ultimately passed unanimously with an amendment to remove the Board of Supervisors from consideration – gives pay increases for 12 other department heads, including the Commissioner of Social Services, Director of Public Works, County Sheriff, County Attorney, and Public Defender.

Although Board members made no objections to a pay increase for other county officers mentioned in the law, the proposed 2015 budget of $13,108 annual salary for each of the 23 town and city supervisors was met with refusal from some Board members who argued pay raises should be based on merit, not longevity.

“Are we doing the best job we can for Chenango County?” asked Smithville Supervisor Fred Heisler before voting on the amendment.

Heisler was one who opposed a pay raise for the Board of Supervisors in 2012, arguing at the time that there were too many newly elected supervisors to justify a pay increase.