salary increases

l County commissioner:

From $70,980 to $81,588

l County sheriff:

From $76,128 to $87,516

l County attorney:

From $89,544 to $100,568

l County assessor, clerk/auditor, recorder, treasurer:

From $67,782 to $76,128

PROVO - Utah County elected officials could opt to give themselves an early Christmas present - a major salary hike.

If they follow the recommendations of the personnel office, county commissioners will vote this month to raise their own base pay, as well as the county sheriff's, by 15 percent. The county clerk, attorney, assessor, recorder and treasurer could get 12 percent salary hikes.

Commissioner Gary Herbert said elected officials deserve to be fairly compensated for their service.

"We find ourselves in a unique and difficult situation. We have to raise our own pay," said Herbert, who will be Utah's lieutenant governor in January. "It's our unique responsibility. And that's always a little bit awkward when you say, 'Well, gee, I deserve a pay increase.' ”

If approved, it would be the first pay increase in three years for county elected officials. Personnel director Lana Jensen said the salary survey her office conducted - which compared Utah County with Davis and Weber counties, Provo and Orem, and comparably sized counties in 11 other states - shows Utah County salaries tend to lag behind. Despite its status as the state's second most populous county, for example, Utah County elected officials' base pay ranks fourth in the state for commissioners and sheriffs.

"I don't have a problem with frugality, but [penury] is another matter," Commissioner Steve White cracked at a meeting this week.

Adding to the angst over the county's compensation is the fact that elected officials there do not collect a monthly car allowance. White noted their counterparts in Weber County pocket $450 a month, and Davis County commissioners collect $542. Utah County only reimburses for mileage.

Sheriff Jim Tracy said his department also makes do with less.

"We do as much or more than most of these other counties," Tracy said. "We're a second-class county, but we're the largest of the second-class counties . . . when it comes to population."

Second-class counties in Utah are counties with a population between 125,000 and 700,000. Utah County's population is about 370,000.

Commissioners could elect to go with a lower raise than recommended. That happened three years ago, when commissioners opted for a 3.5 percent hike instead of the 12 percent that was proposed. Or they might forgo any increase.

The commission is expected to vote on a pay raise at its Dec. 14 meeting.

meddington@sltrib.com