A raise for the Kinston mayor and city council does not have universal support.

As Neuse News reported last week, the proposed budget for the City of Kinston for the upcoming fiscal year includes a more than 40% raise for members of the city council and the mayor, despite a steep drop in expected revenues that could lead to furloughs and layoffs for city employees. 

Long-time city councilman Joe Tyson, who did not run for re-election in 2019 due to health concerns, said he would not be in support of the raise if he were still a member of the city council. 

“There is never a good time for the mayor and city council to ask for an increase in their stipend, but this is the worst time to do that,” Tyson said. 

Tyson served on the Kinston City Council for more than nineteen years, he said, and in that time, he always opposed the idea of increasing the stipend for council members. 

“The people in the city of Kinston can’t afford that. If you can’t afford to be on the city council, don’t run for the office. I was never there for a salary, I was there to serve the community,” Tyson said. 

Councilman Robbie Swinson IV, who is currently the longest-serving member of the Kinston City Council, told Neuse News that he is not in favor of the budget due to the proposed raise. 

“I’m not saying that we don’t deserve [a raise], however, with the financial situation of the city and the pandemic, I don’t think the time is right now to ask for an increase for the mayor and council members. Anything that is out of the ordinary, I don’t agree with,” Swinson said.

Swinson said that he would not vote in favor of the budget if it included the raise. 

Since Neuse News reported on the proposed budget, Swinson said he had heard from a number of citizens who were not supportive of the raise. 

Swinson said he hopes the public reaction to the proposal will cause other members of the city council to reconsider the raise, and remove it from the budget. 

A public hearing on the proposed budget will take place on Monday, June 15 at 7 p.m. during the regularly scheduled City Council meeting. Citizens can participate by submitting a Citizens Comment Form that can be found on the City of Kinston website at https://www.ci.kinston.nc.us/.