Title
Notice/Advertisement Title: Citizens’ Commission on Elected Official Compensation Minutes
Contact Name: Kirsten Estose
Contact Telephone Number: (614) 645-2728
Contact Email Address: KMEstose@columbus.gov
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The 2026 Citizens’ Commission on Elected Official Compensation met for the first time on Friday, January 30 at approximately 8:30 a.m. in Columbus City Council Chamber (90 W Broad St, Second Floor, Columbus, OH 43215). Chair Chris Moses, Commissioner Alyvia Johnson, and Commissioner Monica L. Womack were in attendance.
Call to Order
Chair Moses called the meeting to order at 8:35am.
Chair Moses recognized Columbus City Council Chief of Staff John Tannous for brief remarks.
Opening Remarks
Columbus City Council Chief of Staff John Tannous provided brief remarks, welcoming the Commission.
Orientation to the Commission
Kirsten Estose, Senior Legislative Analyst for City Council, presented on the history of the Commission, specific provisions in Charter regarding the Commission, and what the Commissioners can expect from staff during the process of developing a report to submit to the city clerk.
Open Meetings and Public Records
Lara Baker-Morrish, Chief Counsel in the City Attorney’s Office, presented on open meetings and public records laws.
Chair Moses asked Ms. Baker-Morrish to speak to any rules on subcommittees.
Additional Remarks
Deputy Chief of Staff to the Mayor Danius Williams joined the meeting. Chair Moses acknowledged Deputy Chief Williams, who made brief remarks welcoming the Commission.
Presentation on Current Compensation of Elected Officials and a Compensation Survey
Greg Beaverson, Compensation Manager in the Department of Human Resources, presented on:
• Elected officials’ salaries and corresponding percentage increases from 2021 to 2026;
• Options for when and how a cost of living adjustment can be applied, when salary increases can take effect, etc.;
• Discussed the size of the City of Columbus as an employer and historical wage increases by employee group from 2015 to 2025.
Commissioner Johnson asked for more context regarding why certain employee groups saw sizable percentage increases in wages during certain years. Mr. Beaverson offered to provide additional information on this topic.
Recess
The Chair declared a brief recess to allow staff to prepare relevant materials to be displayed on the monitors in Council Chambers.
Presentation on Current Compensation of Elected Officials and a Compensation Survey (Continued)
Mr. Beaverson continued his presentation. He shared the survey used by the 2022 Commission to invite feedback. He also presented a list of potential cities to survey, referencing previous Commissions and Census data.
Commissioner Womack requested that staff evaluate cities of similar demographics to Columbus in determining which cities to survey.
Chair Moses requested that staff evaluate cities with a similar percentage of college-educated individuals in determining which cities to survey.
Commissioner Womack requested that staff evaluate which cities are situated in similar metropolitan areas in determining which cities to survey.
Mr. Beaverson spoke to the challenges of surveying.
Commissioner Johnson requested that staff evaluate the rate of population growth of cities as a point of comparison in determining which cities to survey.
Commissioner Womack asked that a question regarding overlap between the role of the Mayor and the role of Council President be added to the survey.
Ms. Estose presented a list of cities with a similar rate of population growth to Columbus.
Discussion on Survey and Benchmark Cities
Chair Moses opened up a discussion on finalizing survey questions and cities to survey.
Commissioner Johnson asked whether there is a minimum number of cities needed to be surveyed.
Ms. Estose replied that there is no minimum in the Charter.
Mr. Beaverson replied that it is helpful to survey more than twenty cities to ensure that there is sufficient data available for analysis due to survey response rates.
Commissioner Womack stated that she would prefer to wait to make decisions on the survey until more information has been provided and more Commissioners are present.
Commissioner Johnson expressed concerns with the timeline if the survey were delayed.
Ms. Estose recommended that the Commission could vote on the survey to maintain progress, but revisit the discussion at the next meeting to add cities to the survey list, as needed.
Commissioner Johnson asked to add three cities to the survey list.
Chair Moses asked to add one additional city to the survey list.
Commissioner Womack agreed.
Motion to Proceed with Survey
Commissioner Womack motioned to move forward with the survey list agreed upon in the preceding discussion. Commissioner Johnson seconded; motion carried.
Chair Moses advised staff that he was comfortable with the one-month timeline to allow for cities to respond to the survey.
Scheduling
Commissioners and staff discussed availability for regular meetings. Because not all Commissioners were present, a decision was not reached during this discussion.
Adjournment
The meeting adjourned at approximately 10:05am.