Carbon County elected officials will see 2% increases in their salaries in 2026 and 2027 after the board of commissioners approved the action at a recent special meeting.

During the meeting, held in the evening earlier this month, the board voted 2-1 to approve the increases for row officers and the board of commissioners with Commissioner Chris Lukasevich voting against the raises for the commissioners; while Commissioners’ Chairman Wayne Nothstein voted no with the exception of the commissioners.

The county is required to set salary of county officers prior to an election year so that officials are not directly voting to approve a pay raise for themselves. The commissioners are up for election next year so the motion would affect the sitting board that is voted into office during the November general election.

Commissioner Rocky Ahner said that he feels people at the top should only get 2% raises; while Nothstein said he felt they deserved more.

Nothstein outlined that since 2011, elected officials received 2% from 2011 to 2013; nothing in 2014 and 2015; 1% in 2016; 2% from 2017-2022. They will also receive 2% increases in 2023 and 2025 and a 1% increase in 2024.

“I think it should be higher especially with this year’s increases,” he said. “Going back to 2010, that is probably about 15-16% that they are down.”

The Carbon County Commissioners, in 2023, will make $75,629; while the treasurer, controller, recorder of deeds, sheriff, prothonotary and clerk of courts will make $67,673; and the register of wills will make $69,367 plus an additional $2,000 for clerk of orphans court; and the coroner will make $32,001.

Commissioner Chris Lukasevich said that “Elected officials in the United States are the highest form of public service but very few go in to enrich themselves. That’s why it is public service. There is no indication that increased salaries for row officers increases the quantity or quality of candidates for their positions so it seems like we are getting pretty darn high quality row officers now with the current rate.

“We’re talking $67,000 plus seems to be a very good living wage so I could see no increase beyond 2 percent,” he said, noting that this excludes the coroner’s salary.

Nothstein responded that he felt it was easy for Lukasevich to say that because he is “on a second career and (is) already collecting a full pension unlike the other elected officials, who spend a great deal of their own money and time ... supporting local organizations.”

Lukasevich said that while this was his second career, his first was spending 34 years serving his country.

“I don’t deny you that and thank you for your service,” Nothstein said, “but that’s not the case with all elected officials. If we don’t keep up with decent wages, look what happen with our employees. We keep losing employees to higher salaries elsewhere.”

Lukasevich responded, saying “Salaries don’t keep people from running. It’s politics in general that keep people from running.”

He then asked to close the discussion.

Ahner voted in favor of the 2% raises. Lukasevich voted yes with the exception to the commissioners since if he chooses to run again and is reelected, that would be in his term; and Nothstein voted no because he wanted higher raises, but added that he voted yes for the commissioners to keep them on the same line as the other elected officials in 2026 and 2027.