County Board wins key point in court ruling on pay dispute with Milwaukee County Executive Chris Abele

A Milwaukee County circuit judge has rejected County Executive Chris Abele's claim that the County Board does not have authority under state law to approve pay of department heads and other executive appointees.

Judge John DiMotto ruled that the County Board did not lose its authority to set pay for more than 300 employees not covered by civil service rules when a 2013 change in state law was passed. That Milwaukee County Board reform measure, known as Act 14, cut the board's resources and limited its powers on contracts, labor negotiations and land sales.

At issue before the court were pay raises that Abele granted to a few appointees in 2015 over the objection of the County Board. Department of Health and Human Services Director Hector Colon received the biggest bump — a 39% raise that lifted his salary to $175,000 a year.

In response, the board adopted a resolution in September 2015 prohibiting the executive from establishing salaries for department heads and 300 other unclassified county workers unless authorized by the board.

Board Chairman Theodore Lipscomb Sr. and the board of supervisors filed a lawsuit against Abele in April 2016 to clarify their role in setting compensation in the wake of Act 14.

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"While the board may no longer supervise the department head, the board still has the statutory authority to set the salary and compensation of county employees," DiMotto says in a decision released Wednesday. He specified that the board is free to provide, fix or change the compensation of department heads.

"While it is the county executive's responsibility to recruit and retain employees, it is the board's responsibility to determine the amount of compensation that it deems necessary for their recruitment and retention," DiMotto says in the decision.

Lipscomb said the judge's ruling reaffirmed the board's policy-making role and its fiscal control over county government.

"This court finds that the decision to set or change employees' salaries is primarily a policy decision," Lipscomb said. The "ruling is a victory for the taxpayers and for checks and balances in government, as it affirms the board's role in ensuring that political appointees are not financially rewarded at the whim of the county executive."

Lipscomb asked Abele not to appeal the ruling to a higher court.

"The public is best served when elected officials work together to find solutions so I am carefully reviewing this decision before jumping to any conclusions," Abele said in a statement.

"My top concern is that the county has a fair compensation system that allows us to attract and retain top talent," he said. "Our workforce and county residents deserve no less."

Abele administration spokeswoman Melissa Baldauff said the judge did set out limits on the board's authority over employee compensation.

While DiMotto ruled the board has authority to set pay ranges for county workers, the judge's decision states the board does not have the authority to control the advancement of individual employees within those ranges, Baldauff said.

Increases in pay within a range and promotions to higher job classifications are not policy decisions, and the board is prohibited under state law from infringing on such administrative functions, according to DiMotto.