Frio budget includes huge raises

By Breyana Segura - Chief Staff Writer | August 16, 2023

SALARIES MAY INCREASE BY THOUSANDS…

The first round of budget talks in Frio County has pegged several elected officials and employees for a substantial salary hike.
Due in part to a 2022 salary scale study by Werling Associates, county employees have been graded on expertise and tenure and were given 50 percent of their raise during this fiscal year and are projected to receive the remaining 50 percent in the 2023-24 cycle.
Commissioners learned during meetings with representatives from Werling that the salary for elected officials and county employees set by the pay scale would be subject to change should there be a change in office.
This year, County Auditor Crystal Marquez conducted the salary grading.
According to the proposed budget discussed during budget workshops in late July and posted on the county’s website, raises contribute largely to the county’s budget increase.
Human Resource Director Ramiro Trevino, who was hired in April after Mary Perez resigned, is set to receive a $22,000 increase, bringing his annual salary to $92,456.

Marquez’ own salary has an $8,000 increase; Frio County Judge Rochelle Camacho is slated to receive $10,000 more per year while County Attorney Joseph Sindon receives a $12,000 raise.
Camacho took office in January 2023 to replace Arnulfo Luna, who was graded on 25 years of experience in the judicial system. He had served as municipal judge for the city of Pearsall and justice of the peace for Precinct 3 before being appointed to the county judge’s seat in 2016.
Frio County Commissioners Mario Martinez and Danny Cano will be graded, as they took office in January, and according to Marquez, will see a salary cut.
Along with the commissioners, it is proposed that Pct. 2 Justice of the Peace Sandra Waldrum take an $11,000 pay cut. Waldrum also took office in January.
“Dr. Werling will be re-assisting me with salary grades,” Marquez said in an email last week.
The auditor said Frio County does not have certified numbers for 2023-24 year and made a decision to use the certified numbers from the 2022-23 fiscal budget.
“We are working off proposed numbers from certified numbers last year,” the auditor told the court. “If we were to put in our estimated values, we would have to cut everywhere. In reality, in the General Fund we would have to cut $271,000 plus that $800,000. So we would have to look for over one million dollars, I let her [judge] know we can either work with last year’s certified numbers to file a proposal or this year’s estimated.”
Marquez said she has been able to cut transfers from the county’s reserves to the general fund from $1.4 million to $996,000.
“Transferring in every year we will go through our reserves,” the auditor said. “That transferring was because there were a lot of projects, Chemo [Ornelas, road and bridge administrator] cut what he could because we do not know if we will get through those projects.”
The proposed budget shows increases in salaries to clerical and maintenance staff, but the posted proposed budget does not itemize individual positions.

Posted in Breaking News