Fielding Questions: DB City Councilmember Compensation

For the first time at the annual State of the City address, Mayor Steve Tye said, audience members heard responses to questions submitted in advance. This is one in a three-part series addressing each of the audience questions and Mayor Tye's response.

With the city of Bell in mind, one resident asked Diamond Bar city officials to bare all regarding city council benefits and pay during the Thursday night:

"In light of city of Bell's salary scandal… What are the current salaries of our City Council Members? Is Diamond Bar in line with other local area cities? Are those salary conditions and amounts available to the public?"

Unlike Bell, Mayor Tye said, the Diamond Bar council does not set its own salaries.

"Diamond Bar is a general law city," Tye said, "which means that council member compensation is set by the state and based on population levels rather than the action of the council or staff as in a charter city like Bell."

According to the city's website, council members currently earn $8,952 per year; health and insurance benefits, a $300 monthly car allowance, and a $43.25 monthly cell phone allowance for council members all weighs in at around $16,119 annually.

For salary and benefits, that totals $25,071 for members of city council.

However, the $12,000 allotment for healthcare plans and insurance can vary based on levels of coverage selected and any leave or disability pay collected.

Tye said that the actions of the officials in Bell were "outrageous" and felt their impact on public opinion "could not taint the nearly 22-year record of fiscal prudence displayed in Diamond Bar, which continues to shine despite these troubled economic times."

"While my colleagues on the Council and I may have different opinions on policy decisions," Tye said, "we all agree on the importance of maintaining the public's trust."

For more information, see the city's page disclosing council member pay and the PDF attached to this article detailing For more on the differences between general law and charter cities, see this .