Local News
New budget implements first council raise since 1970s
Members shrink from 17 to 13 and will get $500 a month
Part of a new spending plan for next year for the city of La Crosse comes with a significant boost in cost for one part of government: The city council.
While the council shrinks from 17 members to 13 next year, the body as a whole becomes more expensive.
Last year, council members voted themselves a 150-percent pay raise to $500 a month.
That new rate will go into effect after the April elections and marks the first time the council’s pay has increased since the 1970s.
This week, a city board approved La Crosse Mayor Tim Kabat’s budget plan for the city for next year, which is about $69 million. That’s smaller than last year and over $600,000 less in spending than the state would allow.
It also freezes the property tax levy at last year’s levels.