Escambia County Commissioner Grover Robinson, who is the only candidate that has pre-filed to run for mayor of Pensacola, has sent an email to the Pensacola City Council asking them not to raise the pay of the mayor from $100,000 to $125,000.
He doesn’t raising the pay will get more good people to run for office. Robinson points out that five people are running for his commission seat, which pays less than the current salary of the mayor.
Robinson recommended the council vote to change the city charter to limit the mayor to serving only two terms or eight years. Such a charter amendment would need to be approved by the voters.
Currently both mayor and council can serve three terms or 12 years.
Grover’s email:
“It has come to my attention that the purpose of the raise for mayor is to get good people to run for office. If that is the case, I would suggest to you that you change the charter for Mayor’s term of service to 2 terms as opposed to 3.
“The reason good people often don’t run is the challenge related to running against an incumbent. That and not the pay is why you have 5 people currently running for District 4 county commissioner and 1 person running for Mayor.
“I strongly believe that legislative branch positions such as Representatives, Senators, council members and commissioners should be more than 8 years because they are a part of a body that is much larger than themselves and it takes time to make a difference in that body. However like President and Governor now, executive branch positions such as Mayor should be limited to 2 terms or 8 years.
“If you want to enhance the community by increasing the both quality and diversity of individuals seeking the office of mayor, then limit the tenure of service to two terms (4 years each) or eight years total. Thank you for your time and consideration.”