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City of Cambridge
City Hall
410 Academy Street
Cambridge, Maryland 21613
410-228-4020
The City of Cambridge Council Compensation Committee meeting be held on
Monday July 15, 2024, at 5:00 pm at City Hall Conference Room, 410 Academy
Street, Cambridge, Maryland 21613. The Council Compensation Committee Meeting
will not be televised on Town Hall Streams, though the public is welcome to observe
in person. These are the following items scheduled:
Agenda
1. Call to Order
2. Welcome and Introductions
3. Review of Information and Focus
4. Discussion
5. Adjourn
Council Compensation meetings are conducted in open session unless otherwise indicated. Pursuant
to the Maryland Open Meetings Act, all or a portion of the Council Compensation meeting may be
held in closed session by vote of the Committee. Please note that the order of agenda items is
subject to change.

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Council Agenda Report
To: The Honorable Mayor Rideout and the Commissioners of Cambridge
From: Cheryl Hannan, PMP, Special Projects Coordinator
Date: June 4, 2024
Subject: Council Compensation
Action Requested: Review this report and direct staff to either create an ordinance for potential
changes to the Council’s compensation or to forgo any changes this year.
______________________________________________________________________________
At the April 22, 2024, Boards & Commissions Work Session, staff was asked to work with Mayor
Stephen Rideout and Council President Lajan Cephas on identifying potential changes to the current
council compensation in advance of the upcoming election.
Per our City Charter, no changes can be made to the mayor or council’s compensation during the
term for which they were elected:
“The ordinance making any change in compensation…shall be passed prior to the municipal
election to elect the next” mayor and council “and shall take effect only as to the next succeeding”
mayor and commissioners (Sec 3-20; 3-23, 3-26).
Steps taken:
• Solicited input from each of the sitting council members and mayor,
• Reviewed the Council Compensation Survey document produced by Maryland Municipal
League (MML) dating to 2016,
• Reviewed Cambridge Ordinance 1168 (Effective 10-13-2020) for changes made by the prior
council,
• Contacted similarly sized municipalities to obtain updates to the MML data,
• Shared findings with the mayor and council president.
In review of the MML Survey and our current compensation, there are multiple components to
consider. These include salary, health insurance, life insurance, retirement programs, travel &
entertainment expenses, and equipment, such as laptops and cell phones.
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Comparative Analysis
Of the 157 municipalities in the State, I focused on the 10 that are the most similar in population size
to Cambridge, with 2020 populations ranging from 9,654 to 17,629, with an average of 13,504.
(Cambridge’s 2020 population is 13,096).1
The FY24 General Fund Budget for each of these municipalities was also considered. This chart
graphs both – budget on the left axis and population on the right), with Cambridge highlighted in
darker blue. Note: Cambridge is the fifth smallest in population and budget compared to the others.
Looking at the governmental structure, of these other municipalities:
• Nine of the 10 have a Mayor.
• Four have four council members; four have five council members and two have six council
members.
• Three of the 10 are Council-Manager forms of government. (One of these no longer has a
mayor.)
1 The 10 municipalities are: Aberdeen, Bel Air, Bladensburg, Easton, Elkton, Havre de Grace, La Plata, Mount Airy,
New Carrollton, and Takoma Park. Geographically, Easton is the only other one on the Eastern Shore. Three are in
Harford County, two in Prince George’s County, and one in each of Cecil, Montgomery, Charles, and Caroll/Frederick
counties.
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Current Cambridge Program vs 10 Comparable Municipalities
City of Cambridge Comparable Municipalities
Mayor Each Commissioner Mayor Each Commissioner
Salary (per year) $12,000 $10,000 $13,853 $9,652 (average)
(average)
Health Benefits Can Purchase 3 provide discount; 3 allow
purchase
Life Insurance/ $25,000 (will be $100K in FY25) 3 provide between ($15k-$25K)
ADD
Retirement/ Option to participate in State Program 2 provide State program, 1
Pension Plan provides 5% to ICMA plan
Smartphone Not provided 2 provide for City business only
Laptop Provided on request for City bus. only 1 provides for City business only
Expense No limit specified; encourage 1 reimb for MML & NLC; 1 reimb
reimbursement attendance at MML. Budgeted at a only for local MML and other local
for Mtgs total for all of $37K for FY25. mtgs
Expense None One provides $1,200 annual
Allowance allowance added to payroll.
• Six of the 10 designate a Council President or Chair; but only two have a compensation
differential for this role.
The two who provide a differential for Council President pay $6,000 and $6,515 (vs.
o
$5,000 and $5,212, for all other council members).
• All provide an increased salary for the mayor’s role.
• The mayors’ salary ranges from $8,500 (Mount Airy and Easton) to $32,000 (Takoma Park).
• The council members’ salaries range from $4,000 to $24,000 (Mount Airy and Takoma Park,
respectively).2
• Cambridge ties for fifth highest for the mayoral salary and is fourth highest for the
commissioners’ salary. This results in the fourth highest salaries overall among the 11
municipalities researched.
The chart below compares the mayoral salaries, commissioner salaries, and the total of all salaries by
municipality.
2 These compensation ranges mirror the budget ranges with Mount Airy’s FY24 General Fund Operating budget the
lowest of the 10 at $6.04M and Takoma Park’s the highest at $32.17M.
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A comparison of total salaries paid to the mayor and commissioners of the 11 municipalities versus
the FY24 General Fund Operating Budgets has Cambridge ranking as fifth highest of the 11. This
does not include additional compensation components such as travel expense reimbursement, health
care premiums, or equipment.
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A review of the spending trend in Cambridge for the total expenses for the elected officials shows a
low in FY2022 of $89,341 and a high in FY23 at $139,066. The largest component of the variance is
dues, meetings & conferences.
Anecdotes from the Other 147 Municipalities
Among the 147 other municipalities there are a few other types of benefits offered:
• One provides the mayor with a vehicle,
• Two provide use of the City’s legal resources to the elected officials,
• Several provide a nominal payment per meeting (between $10-$35) for attendance at special
meetings or as a meeting liaison.
• Several jurisdictions provide allowances on water & sewer fees,
• One provides a membership to Sam’s Club.3
Among the 147 other municipalities, only 14 specifically indicated to MML that they provide an
expense allowance or reimbursement. These ranged from $300/year to $3,600/year and frequently
3 The last three of these bullets are generally associated with very small jurisdictions who provide salaries ranging from
$0 (zero) to $90/mtg to $3,600/$1200 to their mayor and council members.
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had a lower rate for council members than for the mayor. Two treated it as an allowance and
included it in payroll as a taxable item.4
Feedback/Proposals Received from the Current Mayor and Council
When solicited for input prior to any of the research, only three of the six current members of council
provided specific items for consideration. No one indicated a high sense of urgency on these items.
Salary Proposals:
• Small increase to all roles; provide a higher rate for the Council President
• Similar to the above but as an example suggested: $15,00 for the mayor, $13,500 for the council
president, and $11,000 for the other four council members.
Travel/Expenses:
• Proposed setting a specific dollar amount to be reimbursed (amount not provided).
• Proposed setting a limit on the number of non-local meetings to be attended (number not
provided).
Other Items:
• Cell phone allowance or provide a phone.5
• Provide a laptop or tablet or allowance toward one. Note: Cambridge currently provides a
laptop on request for City business use only and it must be returned at the end of the council
member’s term of office.
Next Steps
• Determine whether specific changes are needed currently.
Consider, in the peer group identified, Cambridge is the fifth smallest in population
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and budget and yet has the fifth highest total salary compensation and would rank
very high if all compensation components are considered.
Also consider that if no changes are made now, the next council, elected later this
o
year, can make changes, but they will not go into effect until a new council is seated
after the 2029 election.
• Provide specific dollar amounts for any proposed changes.
• If changes are supported, have staff draft an ordinance for consideration at the next Council
Meeting.
4 MML Council Compensation Survey 2016
5 A cellphone would cost approximately $350/year/person. Staff could provide a “soft-phone” at approximately
$240/person/year. Multiple third party options exist that range from free to just a few dollars a month that council can
install as an app on their personal phones to segregate calls from constituents.
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Fiscal Impact
The fiscal impact is currently unknown. If changes are requested that provide additional benefits, this
will impact the FY25 budget. The council may decide to do nothing ($0 impact) or reduce one benefit
(for example, meetings) and increase another by an equal amount ($0 impact).
Equity Impact
Currently all council compensation components, other than salary, are the same for the mayor and all
council members.
Environmental Impact
N/A
Approved by: Brandon Hesson, Assistant City Manager
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Cambridge Compared to Ten Similarly Sized (population) Maryland Municipalities
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