Commissioners set salaries

The salaries for county officials have been set by the Board of Carbon County Commissioners (BOCCC).

The commissioners approved Resolution 2022-16 during their May 3 meeting. The resolution sets salaries for all county officials from January 1, 2023 to December 31, 2026. Per Wyoming State Statute 18-3-107, county commissioners are required to meet before June 1 every four years to set those salaries.

Under that statute, the following county officials are to be paid not less than $10,000 annually and not more than $100,000 annually; county assessor, county clerk, clerk of district court, county sheriff and county treasurer.

Under Resolution 2022-16, the salaries of county assessor, county clerk, clerk of district court, county treasurer and county coroner were set at $85,000 annually. The salary of the county sheriff was set at $100,000 annually.

The salary of the county attorney, meanwhile, was set at $125,000 annually. According to Wyoming State Statute 18-3-107(a)(ii)(C), county attorneys after January 2009 cannot be paid less than $35,000 and more than the salary authorized for a district attorney per 9-1-802(d) of state statute. Under that section of the state statute, a district attorney receives an annual salary of $100,000.

As for the salaries of the county commissioners, those were set at $30,000 annually. When a similar resolution—Resolution 2018-18—was passed in 2018 the salary for county commissioners was set at $25,0000. Per state statute, county commissioners cannot receive a higher salary than the lowest paid elected full-time official in the same county.

While the resolution did approve the resolution unanimously, there was some discussion prior to its passage.

“Knowing full well that this salary will go into effect for the next people in line, do I need to abstain with the current relationship I have with the district court clerk?” asked Commissioner Travis Moore.

Moore and Clerk of District Court Mara Sanger are siblings.

“(The) Attorney might correct me but, being as it’s a multiple-class decision that everybody’s a part of, that muddies the water,” replied Commissioner John Espy.

Carbon County Attorney Ashley Mayfield-Davis informed Moore he would only need to abstain if it were a direct payment to Sanger.

Additional discussion centered around when the increased salary for county commissioners would take effect.

“Typically in the past … the salary for the commissioners that are not running this year wouldn’t take effect until they’ve run,” said Carbon County Clerk Gwynn Bartlett. “So, for three of the commissioners, they’d stay at $25,000 until their term is up. So the two that are running this year would get that new salary.”

Both Moore and Chairman John Johnson are up for re-election this year. The terms for commissioners Byron Barkurst, Sue Jones and John Espy end December 31, 2024.

The next meeting of the Board of Carbon County Commissioners will be at 2 p.m. on May 17 at the Hanna Town Council in Hanna.