NO WONDER THEY WANT TO BE JPs: CUPID SALAZAR LEADS

JPs' Salary                  Car Allowance                Cell Phone (All)         
     $47,172                             $5,400                             $960            
                                           
                                                      WEDDINGS      +    SALARY, BENEFITS
JP 2-1 Linda Salazar            644 X $200 = $128,400    +$53,000 = $181,400  

JP 5-1 Sally Gonzalez          228 X $200 = $45,600      +$53,000 = $98,600

JP 2-2 Jonathan Gracia         137 X $200 = $27,400      +$53,000 = $80.400

JP 4-1 Juan Mendoza Jr.       109 X $200 = $21,800      +$53,000 = $74,800

JP 5-2 Eloy Cano                    82 X $200 = $16,400      +$53,000 = $69,400

JP 2-3 Mary Esther Sorola      75 X $200 = $15,000      +$53,000 = $68,000

JP 1-1 Benny Ochoa                63 X $200 = $12,600      +$53,000 = $65,600

JP 3-1 Guadalupe Ayala           62 X $200 = $12,400      +$53,000 = $65,400

JP 3-2 David Garza                   58 X $200 = $11,500      +$53,000 = $64,000

JP 5-3 Mike Trejo                      24 X $200 = $4,800        +$53,000 = $57,800                  

By Juan Montoya
During a public hearing held last week, Brownsville resident Robert Uresti opposed the granting of any salary increases for any public officials saying that they knew what the salary was when they ran for office.
He specifically objected to the JPs getting raises because they are allowed under Texas law to keep the fees when they perform a wedding ceremony.
He said that he had recently gotten married (for the third time) and that the fee schedule for a ceremony Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. to p.m. at the courthouse was $200.

In fact, the performance of wedding ceremonies has been the object of contention among some of the JPs from outside (and inside) Brownsville who complain that many couples are steered to JP Linda Salazar after they get a marriage license at the county clerk's office. Some couples have reported that clerks often tell them to go see her to perform the ceremony.

At $200 per ceremony (it could be as much as $350 if it's on a weekend or somewhere else like at South Padre Island) the JPs get to keep the money and not the county coffers.

Nine JPs have filed grievances to be heard by nine members of the public drawn from a jury pool to hear their justifications for a salary increase. They will be heard at 6 p.m. Thursday on the second floor of the Dancy Building on Monroe St. in Brownsville.
They are: Pct. 1-1 JP Benny Ochoa, Pct. 2-1 JP Linda Salazar, Pct. 2-2 JP Jonathan Gracia, Pct. 3-1 Guadalupe Ayala, Pct. 3-2 JP David Garza , Pct. 4-1 JP Juan Mendoza, Pct. 5-1 JP Sallie Gonzalez, Pct. 5-2 Eloy Cano, and Pct. 5-3 Mike Trejo.

Only Pct. 2-3 JP Mary Esther Sorola did not file a grievance with the committee to get a salary increase. Both Sorola and Gracia took office in January 2015.
All are currently earning a set salary of  $47,172, a $5,400 auto stipend and a $960 phone allowance that bring them close to the $53,000 mark.
They will reportedly ask the nine-member committee to grant them a 29 percent salary hike that would bring them to $68,000.

But as Uresti pointed out, their salary does not include the fees they charge for performing the wedding ceremonies either in their courtrooms or in private homes or public events venues.
If we use an average of $200 per wedding (and strike the high of $350 and low of $150 or free as a courtesy to some political acquaintance), multiply it times the number of wedding since October 1, 2015, the beginning of the fiscal year, until August 29, 2016, we get a pretty good picture of this lucrative public position

Look at the graphic above and see why some JPs complain that there is a system in place that favors one over another.

The JPs who will be represented by Gracia before the salary grievance committee will say that the commissioners court stiffed them last time by withholding a 10 percent raise from them and then not giving their staff the 10 percent they were promised and giving them a 5 percent raise instead. Now, adding all that up and comparing their salary with neighboring counties, they figure that the 29 percent is actually a small amount indeed.

Opponents like Uresti say that the JPs use county facilities, county staff, and resources and then pocket the marriage money. In fact, if the total estimated take in wedding ceremonies by all of therm ($296,000) was put into a kitty and each of the JPs got the 29 percent raise to their salary and benefits ($530,000) they wanted, it would total $153,000 and have $143,000 left over (maybe for the help?).

Will the nine JPs be successful at convincing the nine-member grievance committee to fork over the 29 percent and leave their wedding gravy in place?