Do Mayor-elect Quinton Lucas and the new City Council deserve a pay raise?

Next week, the Kansas City Council is expected to take up the ticklish task of voting on higher salaries for the incoming mayor and new council.

Raises like these almost always spark outrage with some voters. And in this case, the pay bumps are substantial, a roughly 15% increase. At a time when other city services are squeezed, double-digit raises for the new mayor and council may seem excessive.

They are not. The City Council should overcome any squeamishness and approve the salary increases, which are necessary and defensible.

Here’s why.

The council last approved raises for elected officials in 2010 as part of an overall salary framework. The ordinance called for paying each council member $61,569, and the mayor $123,156, with annual 4% raises after that.

Less than a year later, though, the council canceled the 4% increases. As a result, salaries for the mayor and council haven’t changed in eight years.

Had the 4% raises remained in effect, council members would now be earning about $81,000 a year, and the mayor more than $162,000. The salary proposals on the table — $70,718 for council members and $141,455 for the mayor — are far less than that.

And the new higher pay would be locked in for the next four years. If they’re approved, salaries for the mayor and council will have increased a little more than 1% annually between 2010 and 2023, hardly an exorbitant amount.

To be sure, the proposed salaries are pretty healthy.

Kansas City’s mayor would earn about as much as the mayors of Portland, Oregon, and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, according to a study by by the American City Business Journals. Mayors in Sacramento and Minneapolis earn less.

Nashville’s mayor earns $180,000 a year. Nashville-obsessed Kansas City can’t let that stand.

A council member in Omaha earns about $38,000 a year, while a Denver council member makes roughly $92,000 annually. Because workloads and responsibilities vary, council salaries are all over the map.

But make no mistake: Kansas City Council seats are full-time occupations. They require an understanding of the intricacies of city policy, the law and the needs of constituents. A reasonable, competitive salary is essential to attract quality candidates who are able to commit their time and energy to oversee a major American city.

And that goes double for the mayor. For better or worse, Kansas City’s mayor is the single most important political figure in the entire region. He or she deserves a salary commensurate with that responsibility.

Next week’s vote will be difficult for Mayor-elect Quinton Lucas, and for the six council members who won reelection in June. They will be voting on raising their own salaries. Typically, that isn’t a good look.

But Kansas City must have qualified, competent leadership at City Hall. Paying reasonable salaries is part of that equation. The increases on the table meet that standard, and the outgoing mayor and council should approve them.