Schuylkill County Controller Christy Joy’s request to give his first deputy a raise Wednesday received no support from other salary board members.
Joy made the motion Wednesday following a discussion last week with the board about the salaries of first deputies at the courthouse. Joy’s motion failed as it was not seconded by another member on the board. The salary board consists of Joy and the three commissioners.
Ron Zimmerman has served as Joy’s first deputy since he took office in 2012. His annual salary is $43,064.
Joy asked the salary board last week to consider raising his salary after they approved Joseph Smerko’s salary of $43,950 as central booking processing coordinator in the sheriff’s office. Joy asked for the same annual salary, increasing Zimmerman’s salary $886 for the year. He said the first deputy’s duties, responsibilities, knowledge and performance has exceeded the job description created in 1994.
“I think Ron does an outstanding job for my office and does a great job in finding ways to save for the county,” Joy said. “I think he has the same level of duties as the finger print expert and I was just looking for parity of wages.”
Clerk of Courts Maria Casey also asked last week that the salary board consider taking another look at first deputy salaries. The first deputy in her office, Paul Steffanic, had an annual salary of $37,628. He has been in the position since 2006 before retiring late last year, but was brought back to the position on a part-time basis last month.
In other news, the commissioners approved the annual software license for 2016 with Election Systems & Software Inc. at $26,745. Frannie Brennan, election bureau director, said that price is down $3,000 from last year. The last day to register or make any changes to voter status is March 28.
Thomas Hale, Schuylkill Haven, and Frank Menne, Pottsville, were reappointed to three-year terms as members of the mental health/developmental services advisory board.
According to the treasurer’s annual tax collection report, the county collected $32,654,193.44 in real estate taxes in 2015. The 67 municipalities had an average 91 percent collection rate, 2 percent exonerated rate and 2 percent delinquent rate.
Meanwhile, $322,230 was collected in per capita tax. The municipalities had an average 66 percent collection rate, 10 percent exonerated rate and 24 percent delinquent.
The commissioners’ retirement board meeting will be held immediately following the commissioners’ public meeting.