Vote Yes On Prop 8

Leaders Citywide Say ‘Vote Yes On Prop 8!’ Will Strengthen Council and City

Dallas Mayor Mike Rawlings and other members of a coalition of local business, civic and political leaders today announced the launch of a campaign to educate and persuade voters on a key city charter proposition that will appear at the end of the November 4 ballot. Proposition 8 would increase compensation for future city council members to $60,000 per year and future mayors to $80,000.

Supporters of the Vote Yes For Prop 8! (www.VoteYesForProp8.com) campaign believe that a salary update is necessary because serving as a city council member is a 40 to 60 hour a week job, and no longer allows the time for another full-time job. Increasing the salary would allow more citizens from more backgrounds the opportunity to serve the city, they say.

“We need to attract the very best candidates to serve our city, and to do this we need to realize that this is a full-time job with high demands on time and talent,” said Mayor Mike Rawlings. “I believe that increasing council member pay is not only fair, but will also ensure that we are opening this opportunity to anyone and everyone who has the valuable skills our city council needs.”

Rawlings, who is still deciding whether to seek reelection next spring, would not be eligible for the pay increase even if he is reelected.  He and other civic leaders stressed that their support is based on the future needs of the city. A campaign is necessary, they say, because the city charter propositions, which will be at the end of a long November ballot, is too important for voters to miss.

“A big part of why the North Texas region has been the envy of the rest of the country economically over the last few years is because of the leadership that has been shown at city hall on a host of measures,” said local private equity financier and education activist Peter Brodsky. “We are competing with cities not just in America but all over the world for investment, jobs and talent, so we need to ensure Dallas can draw leadership from the widest pool possible to help keep us competitive.”