No raises next fiscal year for Liberty County elected officials, for now

Liberty County commissioners on Tuesday considered an agenda item that would have raised their salaries and the county judge’s salary for the next fiscal year to $92,500, an increase of $17,620 for each commissioner and $22,949 for the county judge. Currently their salaries are $74,880 for commissioners and $69,551 for the county judge, whose salary also is boosted through his presiding over guardianship, juvenile and probate court proceedings.

Additionally, had the agenda item passed, commissioners would have received an additional $5,000 for their car allowance, from $20,000 last year to $25,000 next fiscal year.

The agenda item was the first order of business once the routine consent agenda passed, and it began with Pct. 4 Commissioner Leon Wilson making a motion to go into executive session where they could discuss it further. Pct. 3 Commissioner David Whitmire seconded his motion. The motion was voted down by Pct. 1 Commissioner Bruce Karbowski and Pct. 2 Commissioner Greg Arthur with County Judge Jay Knight providing a tie-breaking vote to keep all discussions about the agenda item in the full view of the public.

Arthur made a motion to approve the salary increases, but his motion died for a lack of a second. What this means is that, for now, their salaries, as well as other elected officials in the county, will remain the same in the upcoming budget. However, it may return before the court and pass at a later date in the weeks leading up to approval of the next fiscal year budget.

Salary increases for the other elected officials are shown below:

• Liberty County Sheriff – $92,500 proposed, $85,000 current, additional $5,000 proposed for auto/fuel, up from the current $20,000
• County Clerk – $89,000 proposed, $79,738 current, no auto allowance
• District Clerk – $89,000 proposed, $79,738 current, no auto allowance
• County Treasurer – $89,000 proposed, $79,738 current, no auto allowance
• Tax Assessor-Collector – $89,000 proposed, $79,738 current, no auto allowance
• Justices of the Peace (all six precincts) – $55,000 proposed, $53,000 current, additional $5,000 proposed for auto/fuel, up from the current $20,000
• Constables (all six precincts) – $55,000 proposed, $53,000 current, additional $5,000 proposed for auto/fuel, up from the current $20,000
• Juvenile Judge (paid to the county judge) – $11,735, no increase over last year

In other business, commissioners:

• Approved acceptance of a $50,000 grant from the Texas Veterans Commission to the Liberty County Veterans Services;
• Approved the purchase of 20 new phone headsets for employees in the County Clerk’s Office at a cost of $10,530, bringing the cost per headset to $526.50;
• Approved appointing Kelvin Burks to the Liberty County ESD #2 board to replace George Tulley who is stepping down on July 14, 2022;
• Approved refunds to four property owners for overpaying their tax accounts;
• Approved a preliminary plat for Santa Fe Subdivision for Section 14 of the development:
• Approved a simple plat request from Ruth Fowler and Staley Walker for a property in Pct. 3. A simple plat request pertains to a development of four lots or less with no interior growth;
• Approved a preliminary plat request for Royal Oaks Subdivision in Pct. 2 along CR 2184;
• Approved a request from Ranchito Alegre II Subdivision for the County to accept their roads for future maintenance; and
• Approved an expenditure of $13,450 to build a handicap-accessible ramp on the new Pct. 5 Constable’s Office in Tarkington.

Toward the end of the meeting, commissioners and the county judge met in an executive session to discuss the possible purchase of the Liberty-Dayton Area of Chamber of Commerce building on Trinity Street in Liberty. As the Chamber is no longer in operation, the building is up for sale.

When they returned to the regular meeting, commissioners voted to authorize County Judge Jay Knight to make a bid offer to purchase the old Chamber building.