Pontiac residents have asked for a full-time council member at city hall — someone they can reach during business hours. In August, voters approved a new charter, which includes a full-time city council president.

But the current council president, Mike McGuinness, couldn’t start that job until a city board determined his salary.

State law limits such pay decisions to odd-numbered years. Salaries are decided by a local officers compensation commission.

The 7-member commission met on Jan. 30, but didn’t have enough members for a quorum. The board met twice in February, once to review the rules and compare salaries and once to vote on the proposed salary for the full-time council seat. On Feb. 24, they agreed unanimously to pay $75,000 a year for the role — $55,035 more than the $19,965 that part-time city council members will earn this year.

Unless the council rejects the commission’s decision, the new pay will take effect by the end of March. McGuinness didn’t wait. He resigned from his full-time job as Berkley’s downtown development authority director, effective Feb. 14, and took an unpaid leave of absence from the Oakland County’s Historical Society, where he is executive director.

Switching jobs means taking a pay cut. He had earned $77,000 at Berkley; $18,150 from his city council job and just under $8,000 from the historical society.

“For as long as I’ve been on city council, I’ve been juggling three jobs: Full-time Berkley DDA executive director, part time with the historical society and part time as city council president,” he said, adding that he will be “All Pontiac, all the time … I want to ensure I can give all my attention and be the best possible full-time council representative for the remainder of the year.”

He’ll have the full-time council job until about two weeks after the November general election.

McGuinness is running for Pontiac’s mayoral seat, as is Oakland County Sheriff’s Deputy Gill Garrett and Oakland Forward Executive Director Kermit Williams. The city’s current mayor, Tim Greimel, said he is not seeking re-election.

The primary is Aug. 5 and the general election is Nov. 5.

Detroit is one of the few communities with full-time council members. Eight were each paid $95,814, last year and will get a raise in July, to $106,231.

The council president, Mary Sheffield, was paid $104,223 last year and will get a raise to $111,647 in July.

How does Pontiac’s part-time city council pay compare to Oakland County cities of a similar size?

When Pontiac’s local officials commission met in 2023, they agreed to pay the part-time council members $18,150 in 2024 and $19,965 this year.

In Royal Oak, which has an estimated population of just under 58,000, city commissioners are paid $20 for each regular or special meeting they attend, up to $1,200 each year. The mayor’s seat is a part-time position that is paid $40 for attending commission meetings, up to $2,000 a year.

In Novi, which has nearly 67,000 residents, city council members are paid on a monthly basis with a salary cap of $4,500 per year, according to city records.

In Southfield, which has an estimated population of just over 75,000, council pay was $20,700 for fiscal year 2023-24 with a 3.5% increase for the 2024-25 fiscal year to $21,424.

Rochester Hills has an estimated population of 76,000.

The city council members were paid $6,944 last year and received a 4.5% increase this year, to $7,256. The council president will be paid $9,212.80 this year, up from $8,816 last year.

Local officer compensation commissions in Southfield and Novi are to meet this year to consider pay rates. Rochester Hills’ human resources committee met in December to set the council’s pay.