Denver postpones effort to give significant raises to Mayor Mike Johnston’s top appointees

Denver city leaders are no longer attempting to secure raises for of Mayor Mike Johnston s top appointees amid growing concern for the city s budget administrators established Monday Johnson s office will pick the efforts back up later this year spokesperson Jon Ewing disclosed Shifting this discussion to the fall will allow for a more complete conversation as we work through the nuances and specifics of an uncertain economic year for Denver and the country he mentioned in an emailed message The appointees who serve as executive directors or in equivalent positions in various departments haven t received any type of raise in three years Their salaries are set in city ordinance and require a vote of the City Council to amend The about-face comes as the reality of the city s budget situation comes into sharper focus In April the Department of Finance gave a bleak projection for next year s budget due to stagnating sales tax revenue which makes up a major portion of the budget Economic uncertainty worldwide and ongoing threats from the Trump administration to eliminate federal grants for Denver are both worsening the budget outlook The city planned to ask for important boosts for chosen of the positions including a raise for the city s chief financial officer with the hopes of retaining and attracting top talent reported Carla Anthony with the city s Office of Human Information Related Articles Denver council poised to approve new tech rules for scooters to keep riders off sidewalks Denver sues Trump administration over million withheld by FEMA Should Denver allow exemptions for Waste No More ordinance Initiative s backer objects to changes Denver moves forward with soccer stadium Park Hill open space in wins for mayor Denver council despite hesitations approves million women s soccer stadium deal The other raises would have ranged from increases of to The raises would have gone to the city attorney along with the heads of other departments that deal with licensing planning citizens healthcare the airport transportation finance buildings human services parks constituents safety and area partnerships The total annual cost of the raises would have been about and would have mostly come from the mayor s office budget We will continue working with council to ensure fair and competitive salaries for agency directors as part of the regular budget process Ewing explained A council committee forwarded the proposal to the full City Council on May The body was set to take a final vote on June Stay up-to-date with Colorado Politics by signing up for our weekly newsletter The Spot