The marshal had attempted to reduce his own salary once before, and now he's trying again.
Though the county administration office's reasoning for declining longtime Marshal Robert Scattini's request to accept a 5 percent pay cut remains uncertain, he has decided to go directly to the board of supervisors and ask them to reconsider it.
Scattini has said he was surprised to learn of administrators' decision and today he told the Free Lance he has requested the county board place the item on the mid-July meeting agenda, so he can again ask for the reduction and find out why County Administrative Officer Susan Thompson's office declined it.
The CAO's office in recent months has sought cost-cutting measures as the state budget situation remains unclear and local revenues continually decline. Most recently, the office implemented a voluntary time-off program for the workforce, with the maximum amount of unpaid vacation time amounting to 5 percent of those employees' respective salaries.
With that, administrators has asked all department heads to accept a 5 percent cut from their base salaries. The six elected department heads by law must voluntarily accept the reduction. Four of six elected department heads - including Scattini - accepted the cut. Two did not. They were Sheriff Curtis Hill and Treasurer/Tax Collector Mary Lou Andrade. All five supervisors, meanwhile, are indicating they will accept the same decline in pay.
"I put it on there (the agenda) to give up my 5 percent like the rest of them," said Scattini, who makes $33,800 annually as a base salary plus variable income from court services. The pay cut would amount to $1,700 off his base salary.
Scattini on June 19 informed Clerk/Auditor/Recorder Joe Paul Gonzalez he would accept the cut. Gonzalez the following Monday told Scattini administrators declined his offer, the marshal said. Gonzalez last week told the Free Lance he could not comment on the matter and that the county counsel's office recommended he decline to talk.
Neither the county counsel nor Thompson could be reached before publication.
Look back for more on this story in Tuesday's edition of the Free Lance.
Kollin Kosmicki Kollin Kosmicki is editor of the Free Lance and Pinnacle. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 337 or editor@freelancenews.com.
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