Future Fairfax County supervisors could see bigger paychecks, now that the county board has voted to consider the pay hike.
The measure, approved on an 8-2 vote during the Fairfax County Board of Supervisors meeting Tuesday, calls for a public hearing on the matter on March 21. It would increase salaries for board members to between $125,000 and $130,000 a year, while the chairman’s salary would go up to between $140,000 to $145,000 a year.
Currently, supervisors make $95,000 annually, and the chairman makes $100,000. The salaries have been at that level since 2016.
The proposed change would bring the salaries more in line with jurisdictions in DC and Maryland, according to an analysis done by county officials and reported by Fairfax Now. A council member in DC makes $152,437, while board members in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties make $146,388 and $133,805, respectively.
If approved, the salary changes for the Fairfax County supervisors would go into effect in January, after county elections in November.
Supervisor John Foust, D-Dranesville, who is leaving the board in January, proposed the measure. He said that the evolving nature of the position and the need to participate in a growing number of regional bodies warrants the increase.
“Our constituents rightly expect us to always be available to them in this electronic era, which makes the time committed to this job more involved and complex than ever. Every Supervisor and the Chairman maintains full office hours throughout the year, and the Board meets most Tuesdays, either for Board Meetings or Committee Meetings. It is not a part-time governing body,” said his proposal for the increase.
Foust also said that compensation should not be a barrier for those who want to run for public office, The Washington Post reported.
For more stories like this, subscribe to Northern Virginia Magazine’s News newsletter.
