Elected officials in Jasper County see salaries increase by about 3-5%

Elected officials in Jasper County will be seeing a pay raise by the next fiscal year. Like in years past the board of supervisors used the recommendations from the compensation board as a foundation. The supervisors ultimately settled on salary increases that were less than what was suggested.

Allison Udelhoven, the secretary of the Jasper County Compensation Board, attended the Jan. 27 board of supervisors meeting to speak on behalf of the recommending body. She presented the minutes of the Dec. 17 compensation board meeting and detailed rationales for each wage increase.

The compensation board recommended the supervisors have their salaries increase by $2,500 and to maintain the $2,500 stipend for the board chair. If approved, the supervisors would have an annual salary of $49,500, or $52,000 for the board chair. Typically, supervisors decline to give themselves raises.

Unsurprisingly, the supervisors voted to not increase their own pay this year. In 2024, the board broke tradition and did give themselves an almost $5,000 raise, increasing their annual salary from $42,020 to $47,000. Additionally, the board chair had received a $2,500 stipend. The stipend was removed this time around.

Supervisor Thad Nearmyer argued the stipend is fair compensation since the chair often puts in a lot of extra work. Then again it was Supervisor Brandon Talsma who suggested the stipend be removed. Talsma said he would do the work regardless of whether the stipend was in place.

“Well, the work probably deserves to be paid for,” Nearmyer said.

Regardless, the supervisors would go on to approve Talsma’s suggestion in a 3-0 vote. This was “the easy one,” Talsma said.

Which would go on to be true. Discussions about county attorney, auditor, recorder, sheriff and treasurer salaries took another 25 minutes to conclude.

The supervisors first tackled the salary of Sheriff Brad Shutts. The compensation board recommended the sheriff’s annual salary increase by $14,831, from $145,169 to $160,000, or what is essentially a 10.22 percent increase. Supervisors felt the increase was a little too high for their liking.

The compensation board rationalized its increase averaging the salaries of police chiefs of communities greater in size and police chiefs smaller in size. The sheriff oversees an entire county, which carries greater responsibility, the board argued. Historically, the sheriff and county attorney have similar compensation.

Eventually, the supervisors settled on an increase of $7,416 (or 5.11 percent), making the sheriff’s annual salary $152,585.

When it came to determining a salary increase for County Attorney Scott Nicholson, again, supervisors did not necessarily agree with the compensation board’s suggestion. The board recommended an increase of $14,745 to bring Nicholson’s annual salary of $145,255 to $160,000 (10.15 percent).

However, Talsma did argue in favor of giving Nicholson an up to $10,0000 raise. He wagered if Nicholson were to retire and the county would have to hire for the position, he doubted Jasper County could get a lawyer to do the county attorney’s job. Supervisor Doug Cupples disagreed.

“I think we could be able to find a lawyer for that kind of money,” Cupples said, noting Nicholson is very valuable to the county. “…But we’ve had these guys (the sheriff and the county attorney) together in the past, and I think that’s where I want to stay with it.”

According to a letter from Nicholson addressed to the compensation board, the workload in the county attorney’s office is abundant.

In total, there were 2,415 criminal cases filed in Jasper County last year, of which 497 were felonies. On average, the county attorney’s office filed 11 new cases a day, about eight domestic violence cases per month and at least one felony case per day. More than 290 drug misdemeanor cases were filed in 2024.

In 2024, the county attorney’s office filed 57 sex offense-related charges, which he said marks a significant and troubling rise. There is also a rising felony caseload and a concerning increase in certain types of offenses, which demands “a dynamic and well-supported legal team.”

For these reasons, the compensation board recommended a higher raise. Talsma felt like Nicholson’s wage has been falling behind considering the volume of cases he oversees and covers. The supervisors would eventually settle on an $8,000 raise (5.5 percent) to $153,255 per year.

Recommendations from the compensation board rounded out the salaries of the county auditor, recorder and treasurer to $100,000. Historically, these three positions have all shared the same equitable salary. This is still the case. But it would likely be the first time all three positions reach six figures.

Again, the supervisors did not follow the compensation board’s suggestion of a $5,304 increase (5.6 percent) from their current salaries of $94,696. Still, they weren’t opposed to an increase either, especially after the rationale explained by County Treasurer Doug Bishop. He argued the raise benefits their employees.

“Our deputies are tied to our salaries,” Bishop said, noting his deputies are essentially department heads and he worried lower compensation for elected officials would effectively punish these employees. The practice of deputy salaries being tied to elected official salaries is enforced by state code.

The compensation board rationalized the increases by saying the auditor’s office has played a major role in development projects in the county, the treasurer’s office has seen huge growth and the recorder’s office is as busy as ever with its proximity to Polk County.

Supervisors would go on to decide the auditor, recorder and treasurer would receive a $3,004 raise (3.17 percent), making their annual salaries $97,700.

Udelhoven said, “It’s not lost on us that you guys are the ones that actually have to work within the constraints of the budget. It’s easier for us to put together recommendations based on what we think it ought to be, but we appreciate your guys’ time and consideration.”