Shelby Co. (ECWd) –
We are about to find out if Shelby County is going to follow the law or break the law as it relates to compensation of certain elected/appointed officials.
The setting of county officer’s compensation is a duty of the county board, as outlined at this link and this link for Board of Review members.
Compensation-setting resolutions is a topic we have covered for years, starting with my past position as Township Supervisor. I refused to sign a check for the compensation of an elected assessor in our township. I refused because there was no compensation-setting resolution complied with by the prior board. I was threatened with a lawsuit if I did not pay the assessor. I was told by our Township attorney to just pay him an hourly wage that we can determine. When I presented the Local Government Compensation Act to our attorney, he said yeh, that is the law but it’s not worth a legal fight not to pay him. I reached out to Township Officials of Illinois and explained the situation. They agreed with me 100% and provided this group of documents which provided the legal standing to not pay the elected official.
I requested the last compensation-setting resolution for Shelby County elected officials.
The response:
“This office has no documentation responsive to your request for those officials whose terms began December 1, 2024.”
I knew that was not accurate as there was a resolution set for the Circuit Clerk as found in this resolution, which was produced, after I requested a review of the initial response for accuracy. The clerk stated the following.
“Attached is the resolution passed by the board in September of 2022 for the Circuit Clerk’s salary. I have no compensation setting resolution for the District #2 Elected Board of Review member or the Coroner. ”
While there is no resolution for the board of review compensation, there are minutes that reflect compensation was set but only for those whose term ends in 2026 as shown in the minutes at this link.
What happens when compensation is not set as the law requires?
Compensation becomes ZERO. NO, this is not our opinion. Case law on the matter is crystal clear.
As the Shelby County Board moves to appoint a coroner that person needs to know what they are walking into, a position that has zero compensation set for it. The same is true for the elected position of Board of Review for District 2. Any attempts to set a new compensation setting resolution and pay the newly appointed coroner or elected board of review member would violate the clear language from the courts on the matter.
Purcell v. Parks (1876), 82 Ill. 346 is the case law on this matter and is still cited in court cases and AG opinions over 100 years later.
“In Purcell v. Parks, 82 Ill. 346, where a· county clerk was elected in November, 1873, for a four-year term from and after the first Monday in
December 1873, and in the following March the county board entered an order fixing the salary of said officer for the term commencing on the
first Monday of December 1873, Mr. Justice Dickey, in delivering the opinion of the court stated:”
“I am Instructed by the court to say that, In the opinion of a majority of the judges thereof, the clerk, under the constitution and statute, is not entitled to appropriate to bis own use any or the fees or his office, except by virtue of an order of the county board. In the absence of such order, such clerk has no compensation by law whatsoever. Hence, the fixing of such compensation by the county board, in their order of March 1874 did not in the sense of the constitution, either increase or diminish the compensation of such officer, for, up to that time, he had, by law, no compensation to be increased or diminished. It was the duty of the county board to have fixed the compensation in question before the election. Not having done so, the power remained unexhausted, and the board might have been compelled either before or after the term began, to exercise the power and fix the same.
‘”We are all of the opinion that when the board has once acted and fixed the compensation of the county clerk, that compensation cannot be changed so as to increase or diminish the compensation to be received by him during his term. A subsequent order of the county board, increasing or diminishing the compensation of the county clerk, can operate only upon the compensation of clerks whose terms begin after the making of such order. “
Any attempt by the Shelby County Board to pay the position of coroner or board of review for District 2 would violate the clear language of the courts on the topic of compensation. While the case law is about a county clerk, the legal analysis is applied across all county officers. The key point on setting a subsequent compensation resolution is that it is only affected for the persons term that begins after the making of such an order. Additionally, the Dalton v. City of Moline case law, not only points to the 1873 Supreme Court case law but also highlights the constitutional prohibition of increasing or diminishing compensation.
Article VII – SECTION 9. SALARIES AND FEES
(a) Compensation of officers and employees and the office expenses of units of local government shall not be paid from fees collected. Fees may be collected as provided by law and by ordinance and shall be deposited upon receipt with the treasurer of the unit. Fees shall not be based upon funds disbursed or collected, nor upon the levy or extension of taxes.
(b) An increase or decrease in the salary of an elected officer of any unit of local government shall not take effect during the term for which that officer is elected. (Source: Illinois Constitution.)
While we have no idea what legal advice the Shelby County Board was given on the above matters, the agenda items for the special meeting that was called have two actions to be taken that violate long-established case law.
15. Discussion and vote to set compensation setting resolution for Board of Review District #2 retroactive to December 1, 2024
16. Discussion and vote to set compensation setting resolution for Shelby County Coroner retroactive to December 1, 2024
While we agree the board can set a compensation-setting resolution for those positions, it cannot be made to be retroactive because doing so establishes an increase in compensation from what it was when the term began for those positions. As case law makes clear, “A subsequent order of the county board, increasing or diminishing the compensation of the county clerk (insert coroner and board of review member in District 2), can operate only upon the compensation of clerks (insert coroner and board of review member in District 2), whose terms begin after the making of such order. “
Considering it is Shelby County; we fully expect to see them ignore long-established law and do as they want. If they do, the people holding those positions and receiving compensation may find themselves on the receiving end of legal action and have to pay those funds back. Such an action can only take place from a person with standing, which is any resident in Shelby County. Those county officials need to know what they are walking into with the board’s attempt to pay them after their failure to perform their duties on this matter.
2 Comments
John K
Posted at 13:33h, 17 DecemberNot to be a skunk at the garden party, but to the extent that any of these positions (thinking mostly coroner) perform duties not classified “exempt” under the federal Fair Labor Standards Act, the County must pay minimum wage for time worked. The Illinois Department of Central Management Services’ inability to define if a state employee was “exempt” or not was cited by a judge in all state employees being paid during Rauner when there was no budget. To my knowledge, this has never been adjudicated, and there are no definitive court rulings. When a coroner is at a crime scene, would think that is exempt (law enforcement officers / crime scene techs are generally). What a mess!
John Kraft & Kirk Allen
Posted at 21:13h, 17 DecemberI don’t believe that applies to elected officials.