NAPLES, Fla. The city’s leaders will make a lot more money soon.
Naples City Council on Wednesday approved increasing their pay and that of the mayor by about $20,000 a year. Council salaries will leap from $23,500 to $40,000 and the mayor’s will go from $30,000 to $50,000.
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The council vote came after a blue ribbon committee recommended the pay hikes, based on research that suggested the elected leaders should be compensated for what are, in effect, full-time jobs.
City Manager Bill Moss argued in September that the existing salaries make it prohibitive for the average citizen, who needs to earn a living, to hold a seat.
The decision lifts the Naples mayoral salary above that of Fort Myers, which pays its mayor $42,000, and Cape Coral, where the mayor makes $36,000.
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