Santa Clarita Council Gives Itself a 5% Raise

The Santa Clarita City Council has given itself and the city manager a 5% raise.

The council is authorized to increase members’ salaries by 5% annually under an ordinance it passed in 1988. Beginning July 1, each of the five council members will earn $694.57 per month, about $33 more than in the 1990-91 fiscal year.

Citing his outstanding performance, the council Tuesday also approved a 5% merit raise for City Manager George Caravalho.

Caravalho, who has held the position for three years, will earn $110,502, or about $9,208 per month, beginning June 14, the anniversary of his employment with the city.

Caravalho’s current monthly salary of $8,770 falls below the average monthly salaries of managers in 17 cities of comparable size, council members said. With his raise, Caravalho will earn more than the city managers of Burbank, Costa Mesa and Ventura, but less than those in Thousand Oaks, Santa Monica and Torrance.