Town Council Votes NO on Wage Transparency
Howell, Box Elder County—Transparency of wages is a novel concept to many towns and counties across Utah. One council member in tiny Howell Town would like to see that change. Councilmember Byron Tuck has petitioned the Howell Town Council to make their wages public. Each member takes care of certain areas and receives wages for it. This includes maintenance of roads, cemetery, water and the community center and park. Tuck asserts that wages are paid with public money and it is the citizens’ right to know where their money is going. Tuck petitioned the town council board members in their March meeting to start publishing wages in the town newsletter. Board members declined, stating the Privacy Act of 1974, and saying it is illegal to publish the wages. Tuck decided to investigate and found that the Privacy Act does restrict the publication of wages unless the person receiving the wages agrees. Tuck took his information back to the Town in their April meeting and again requested that they all agree to have their wages published. The town board again declined stating they were unwilling, despite the fact the all of the citizens outside the Town board that Mr. Tuck had spoken with had said that ‘yes’ they think the publishing of the wages would be a good idea.
For now, the Town Council of Howell refuses to have their wages made public. However, it should be noted that public wages are the property of the people and anyone can have access to them thru a GRAMA request. One website, www.utahsright.com, has made it their goal to publish all public wages. If you go to their website, many of the States’ public workers’ wages are already online. Their website states, “Beginning in fiscal year 2011, government agencies have been required to report their salary information at a certain level of detail, including employee earnings by name, job title and gross compensation. Gross compensation includes not only the employee’s wages, but also the cost of benefits, bonuses and reimbursements. ”
If your town is not listed (Howell Town is not), contact their website and request it to be added. Remember public employees use taxpayer money to fund their job and it is the public’s right to know. For more information on how to file a GRAMA request go to: http://auditor.utah.gov/accountability/grama/ for information and a link to the form.
