Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
This archived news story is available only for your personal, non-commercial use. Information in the story may be outdated or superseded by additional information. Reading or replaying the story in its archived form does not constitute a republication of the story.
SALT LAKE COUNTY -- Outrage, mass e-mails and endless talk killed a controversial proposal at Salt Lake County Monday. The county council will stay part time, and their salaries will stay as they are.
The idea was to give council members flexibility in how to budget their time, but it became more trouble than it was worth to the man who proposed it: Councilman Randy Horiuchi. That's why he pulled it off the table Monday.
Horiuchi says he sensed that people were worried about the form of county government. Voters approved the Mayor and part-time council for the county eight years ago, but the details of the idea caused a sensation too.
Horiuchi floated a plan to allow council members to increase their hours, and salary, if they wanted to. In exchange, the hours of their staff would be reduced. But he pulled the proposal, in spite of his continuing concern about the amount of time it's taking to do the job.
"If the public expects us to do a good job, then they expect us to take the time to do it. And that's what this proposal would have done, would have allowed us to spend more time to do the position," Horiuchi said.
Salt Lake County Councilman Michael Jensen said, "My bias going in, I just want everyone to know, is I'm probably going to be on the ‘no' side of the camp, just because of the needs and the diversity that we have with the council."
Councilman Jim Bradley says the idea went against what voters approved, but others pointed out they're putting more time into this part-time job these days, and that will require a solution some day. For now, though, the council will remain part time; their salaries will stay the same.
E-mail: rpiatt@ksl.com
