Special Meeting, Special Spending – Lorain’s August 12 Council Agenda and the Ever-Growing Payroll
By Aaron Knapp | Lorain Politics Unplugged
Aug 11, 2025
Th
e Meeting That Adds More to the City’s Payroll
On Tuesday, August 12, 2025, Lorain City Council will hold a Special Meeting at 5:30 p.m. The headline item for most residents will be the proposal to create a new Police Support Specialist 3 position and eliminate the Data Administrator in the Lorain Police Department.
But the reality is bigger than one title swap. The council will be voting on a revised Exhibit A that reshuffles and expands the city’s non-bargaining salary schedule for the Mayor’s Office, Safety/Service Department, and LPD support staff. And almost every move—no matter how it’s funded—adds to the long-term personnel cost burden that’s already pushing Lorain’s General Fund to its limits.
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What’s Changing – Position by Position
From Exhibit A (Revised 08/06/2025):
Mayor’s Office & Safety/Service Department
- Executive Assistant – Mayor
- $52,716.67 – $73,803.34 | 100% General Fund
- Director of Public Safety/Service
- $96,814.55 – $133,120.00 | 55% GF / 23% Water Pollution / 22% Water Fund
- Deputy Safety/Service Director – Community Programs & Affairs
- $56,670.42 – $79,338.59 | 55% GF / 23% Water Pollution / 22% Water Fund
- Executive Assistant – Safety/Service Director
- $49,038.76 – $68,654.27 | 55% GF / 23% Water Pollution / 22% Water Fund
- Deputy Safety/Service Director – Chief of Staff
- $75,681.59 – $105,954.23 | 35% GF / 23% Water Pollution / 22% Water Fund / 20% Hospitalization Fund
Lorain Police Department
- Manager of Administrative Services (LPD)
- $49,038.76 – $68,654.27 | 100% General Fund
- Police Support Specialist 1
- $50,000 – $65,750 | 100% General Fund
- Police Support Specialist 2
- $45,000 – $65,750 | 50% General Fund / 50% Levy Fund
- Police Support Specialist 3 (NEW)
- $45,000 – $65,750 | 50% General Fund / 50% Levy Fund
- Criminal Investigator (Hourly)
- $20.00 – $40.50/hour | As scheduled, paid from case-appropriate funds
Human Resources
- Human Resources Generalist
- $75,681.59 – $105,954.23 | 55% GF / 23% Water Pollution / 22% Water Fund
- Administrative Assistant to HR
- $52,368.00 – $65,460.00 | Funded from reallocation of HR Director & Mayor’s Secretary salaries
The General Fund Share – Why It Matters
Even with creative funding splits, the General Fund is still paying a portion of almost every position listed above. Some—like the Executive Assistant to the Mayor or the Manager of Administrative Services (LPD)—are 100% GF-funded. Others are partially charged to enterprise funds like Water and Water Pollution Control, or to the Police Levy Fund.
But here’s the problem:
- Personnel costs already make up 75–80% of the General Fund.
- Payroll jumped 18% in 2024 alone, from ~$36 million to $42.6 million.
- Reserves dropped by $3.2 million last year.
- COVID relief dollars that helped balance the budget are gone as of 2025.
This means every extra General Fund dollar committed to salaries is a dollar not available for streets, parks, recreation, or paying down debt—and it compounds year after year with cost-of-living raises, benefits, and pensions.
Spotlight: The New Police Support Specialist 3
The new PSS 3 role, per Exhibit B, is a civilian public information and community engagement specialist for LPD.
- Pay: $45,000 – $65,750
- Funding: 50% General Fund, 50% Police Levy Fund
- Duties: Manage social media, create press releases, attend public meetings, pitch stories to media, handle crisis communications, recruit officers.
It replaces the Data Administrator position. City officials say the switch “maximizes utilization of already appropriated dollars” and keeps new General Fund demands minimal. Still, half the salary and benefits will hit a General Fund that’s already under strain.
A Decade of Upward Pressure on Personnel Costs
Looking back 10 years:
- 2015: General Fund spending ~ $30.4M; deep layoffs to control payroll, including 23 firefighters cut in one summer.
- 2020: Spending still in the mid-$30M range; lean staffing.
- 2023: Jump to ~$45M after ARPA funds allow rehiring, pay raises, and overtime.
- 2024: Payroll hits $42.6M; reserves dip to $9.8M.
The city auditor’s warning is blunt: “We are spending more than we’re making.” The five-year forecast expects obligations to keep growing—especially when grant-funded positions roll onto the General Fund.
The Pattern Is Clear
Lorain’s budget has become dependent on adding positions during good years without a long-term plan for when revenues flatten or drop. Salary obligations grow automatically—through raises, benefits, and pensions—even if hiring stops. Unless there’s a permanent revenue boost, the city will be forced to cut services, raise taxes, or both to keep the books balanced.
Final Thought
The August 12 vote isn’t just about one police PR role—it’s another turn of the ratchet on a payroll that has been steadily tightening the city’s financial flexibility for a decade. Council can pass it in one night under the “emergency” designation.
If Lorain keeps increasing personnel costs without a matching plan for sustainable funding, the question isn’t whether we’ll face another fiscal crisis—it’s when.
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