Cottonport to consider $1/hr. pay hike for police officers

Action on a proposal to raise the pay rate for Cottonport police officers was postponed to the January Town Council meeting, the council decided at its Dec. 17 meeting.

Police Chief Earnest Anderson has asked council members to change hourly pay rates POST-certified full-time officers from $11 to $12 and non-POST-certified full-time officers from $10 to $11.

Anderson recommended to increase part-time POST-certified officers’ pay from $10 to $11 an hour and non-POST-certified part-time officers from $9 to $10 an hour. The council will consider the recommendation at its January meeting, which will be held on Tuesday, Jan. 22, due to the regular meeting date falling on Martin Luther King Day.

Mayor Scotty Scott said the council will be “crunching the numbers” over the next month “to make sure we can afford to do this.” The town is halfway through its budget year, and Scott said the town has to determine what impact the proposed raises for police officers would have on the overall budget. 

In another matter, the council unanimously adopted a motion to enter into an agreement with Louisiana Municipal Advisory and Technical Services Bureau (LaMATS) to collect delinquent debts owed to the town. The council introduced the ordinance at its Nov.19 meeting.

LaMATS is part of the Louisiana Municipal Association and provides the “Municipal Debt Recovery” program at no cost to the town.

Under this program, LaMATS will recover revenue owed by individuals for services received, taxes owed or fines imposed by municipal courts.

LaMATS adds a collection fee to the original debt to pay for its services.

“Municipalities should not be burdened with the effort or expense” of recovering what is owed to them, a LaMATS spokesman said. “There are costs associated with tracking down the debtor, but these costs are the responsibility of those owing the debt and not of the municipality.”

Scott said under this agreement, “LaMATS will be a bill collector for us. It will collect what is owed to us and not charge us for the service.”

In other action, the council:
-- Proclaimed Jan. 20-26 to be School Choice Week in Cottonport. School Choice Week is a national observance to raise awareness of the need for effective educational options
-- Changed the term of the fire chief from two years to four years, effective in January. A public hearing on the proposed change will be held at 5:45 p.m. on Jan. 22.