Warren Town Council members are holding off for now on a plan that would give them regular pay adjustments based on the Consumer Price Index.

Council members currently earn $1,292.20 per year for their service. At this month’s council meeting, members considered, but ultimately put off for now, a plan that would increase that pay to $1,300 per year and would automatically make adjustments to that amount on a yearly basis. While it is technically possible that pay rates could drop if the CPI drops substantially, that is unlikely, Warren Town Solicitor Anthony DeSisto said.

The idea is “to remove from the council the sort of improper position of voting raises for themselves, which always seemed strange,” council president Keri Cronin said. “I don’t think any of us are doing this for the pay. But it represents a little gratitude from the town I think. We could remove (compensation) all together, we could leave it as is, or we could have it increased in a way that doesn’t put the responsibility on us to make that decision,”

The Town Charter spells out how much town council members receive, and any change in the charter would require a vote in the November general election. Councilor John Hanley brought up the issue in the first place, remarking that the current compensation of just under $1,300 is actually a violation of the charter - the document actually specifies that councilors should receive $1,200 per year.

“Somehow it went (up) which technically is a charter violation,” he said. “That was my concern; to correct that.”

Not all wanted to support the change, however. Councilor Joseph DePasquale suggested that council members appear before the town’s Charter Review Commission, which will soon start meeting to discuss possible changes to the document.

“I don’t want to take any action with anything having to do with our pay, especially at this horrible financial time,” he said. 

Ultimately, councilors voted 4-1, with Mr. DePasquale opposed, to have the town manager and solicitor study the issue further, and report back at the June meeting.

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