Bill raising all county salaries introduced in Assembly

A measure to raise pay scales for all county elected officials was introduced Monday in the Nevada Assembly.

It follows two separate bills introduced to raise the pay of sheriffs and district attorneys last week.

AB66 would bump annual base pay for Carson City, Douglas and Lyon county clerks, assessors, recorders and treasurers from $51,360 to $70,060.

Officials from the Nevada Association of Counties say that's not as much as it seems because none of those officials have had a raise for eight years. The percentage of increase was matched to the overall average increase in private sector pay rates over that period.

In addition, Carson supervisors and commissioners in the other counties would get a raise from $18,000 a year to $24,554.

Since the Legislature sets pay scales for local elected officials, it is often several sessions between raises for them.

AB66 includes the same pay hikes proposed in legislation last week for sheriff's and district attorneys.

In Carson, Douglas, Lyon and Churchill counties, district attorneys would receive a base of $98,707 and sheriffs would get $81,846. That compares to the current base pay of $72,360 for district attorneys and $60,000 for sheriff.

In addition, those officials who are re-elected for multiple terms get longevity pay. Under existing law, they get 2 percent more each year after the first four years of service, up to a maximum of 120 percent of whatever base pay the Legislature sets. At this point, the only Carson City official receiving the full longevity pay is District Attorney Noel Waters. Douglas County Clerk Barbara Reed qualifies in her county.