South Gate City Council moves forward to propose a salary raise per bill 329

On Tuesday March 26, South Gate City Council voted to move forward with a proposal to increase the salary level of city council members and the city treasurer, prompted by the California bill 329. 

If approved, the City Council monthly salary would increase from $790 to $1,900 per month. The City Treasurer's salary would increase to $1,110.

“We don’t do this because we want to get rich,” City Council Member Maria del Pilar Avalos said at the meeting. “We do this because it’s a calling…because at the end of the day I live here.”

Senate Bill 329 took effect on January 1, 2024, and provides new pay caps for California city council members based on city population size.

The new caps range from $950 per month for cities with up to 35,000 in population, to $3,200 per month for cities with populations over 250,000. The cap provided for a city the size of South Gate, which has a population of 89,418, is $1,900 per month, which covers cities with populations between 75,000 and 150,000.

The salary change becomes effective in December 2024.

Mayor Gil Hurtado said he wants to make sure his “council colleagues are respected for what they do.” 

"These are part-time jobs but I gotta tell you, we're on the clock 24 hours a day, seven days a week," the Mayor said.

He went on to say that what happened in neighboring Bell was that their city council members bamboozled residents to become a charter city and that is why some of their city officials were paid nearly $800,000 a year. A 2010 Times investigation exposed a corruption scandal in Bell that resulted in six city officials being convicted.