Pay rates set at local towns

The four local municipalities passed their salary ordinances in the past several days.

Clerks, public works directors and police chiefs have a wide range of salaries.  Most have the same benefits.

Grand Coulee Police Chief Mel Hunt is paid $45.93 an hour, or $95,901.84 annually, while Coulee Dam’s police chief, Pat Collins, receives $30.17 an hour, or $62,994 annually.

Differences occur through length of service and extra duty demands. Hunt has been with the Grand Coulee Police Department 35 years, most of the time as chief. He receives extra pay for being on call 70 hours a month.

Coulee Dam Town Clerk/Treasurer Carol Visker is paid $30.17 an hour or $62,994 annually. Her counterparts, Renee Tillman of Elmer City gets $15.50 an hour or $32,364 annually; Carol Boyce of Grand Coulee receives $21.18 an hour or $44,054 annually; and Electric City’s Jackie Perman receives $25.43 an hour, or $52,703 annually.

There’s also a wide range of pay in the public works category.

Public works director in Elmer City, Jim Tillman, receives $17 an hour or $35,496 annually; Grand Coulee’s Dennis Francis receives $26.99 an hour or $56,355 annually; Barry Peacock at Coulee Dam receives $30.17 an hour or $62,994 annually; and Ken Dexter of Electric City is paid $26.47 an hour or $55,149 annually.

Coulee Dam pays Mayor Quincy Snow $250 a month; Electric City pays Mayor Jerry Sands the same; and Grand Coulee pays Mayor Chris Christopherson $400 a month. Elmer City mayor Mary Jo Carey is not paid, nor are its council members.

Coulee Dam pays its council members $50 a month and Grand Coulee pays its council members $40 a meeting for up to three meetings.

Electric City, while its council has talked about it, doesn’t pay its council members anything.