How Much Do Local Elected Officials Make?

MANATEE — It’s no secret that Manatee County is growing and the local governments who oversee public services are tasked with keeping up with that growth. TBT wanted to learn what our locally elected officials and lead government officials across the county are paid for their respective roles. We collected data from multiple local governments, including the county, the school district, multiple cities, and several constitutional officers. Here’s what we learned.

In serving a county estimated to be home to roughly 430,000 residents in 2022—up from its estimated 400,000 in 2020—the Manatee County Government employs more than 2,000 employees across its eleven services departments, its office of administration, office of county attorney, and the Convention and Visitors Bureau. For FY23-24, Manatee County Commissioners approved a record-setting $2.6B budget. 

As the head of the organization, the county administrator is the highest-earning employee, but the second highest-paid county employee is the county attorney who earns $216,840 a year. County Attorney Bill Clague recently announced he will be resigning from the organization this March.

The county attorney and county administrator salaries are approved by county commissioners and as of Jan. 2024, Manatee County Administrator Charlie Bishop receives a base annual salary of $226,553.

Bishop is the fourth county administrator—or acting county administrator—to lead the organization within the last three years. Bishop first joined the organization in 2001 and currently holds the record for earning the highest county administrator salary in the history of Manatee County.

Shortly after being appointed to the position by commissioners, Bishop rounded out his administrative cabinet. The administrator’s chief of staff and three deputy county administrators are the next highest earners within the organization.

Chief of Staff Andrew Butterfield receives an annual base salary of $190,923. Butterfield is fairly new to the organization, selected by Bishop in Oct. 2023. Butterfield is also the first person to hold the “Chief of Staff” title in Manatee County Government. 

Like Butterfield, Deputy County Administrators Evan Pilachowski and Bryan Parnell also earn an annual salary of $190,923 each—both are also relatively new to the organization. First hired as the county’s director of utilities, Pilachowski joined the organization in Oct. 2022. Parnell was selected by Bishop for a deputy role in Oct. 2023.

Deputy County Administrator Courtney De Pol is the longest-serving among the county’s deputy administrators having been with the organization for two years. First hired in Jan. 2022 by former administrator Scott Hopes, De Pol served as the director of the Department of Development Services for six months before she was promoted to a dual role as both a deputy and director. In early 2023, De Pol’s role was narrowed to deputy alone, and as deputy county administrator, De Pol earns slightly more than her counterparts at $196,643 annually.

The next highest-earning county employee is Natural Resources Department Director Charlie Hunsicker. Hunsicker has been with the organization since 1991, and as the highest-earning department director, he receives a base annual of $189,904.

The School District of Manatee County is the single largest employer in the county. It provides services to more than 53,000 students across all local schools (traditional, contract, and charter). The district employs roughly 6,230 employees, with slightly more than 600 of those being part-time.

Sheriff Wells was first elected in 2017 and is currently serving his second term. The position is up for election this November, and Wells is likely to run for reelection unopposed.

As lead of the largest law enforcement entity within the county’s boundaries, Wells oversees more than 1200 employees, including just over 800 certified and sworn law enforcement/corrections deputies. As of Jan. 2024, the Manatee County Sheriff’s salary is set at $216,504, increased by the state from the previous fiscal year's $204,412 salary determination. 

As noted on the state’s salary schedule, the salary figures of the elected officials above do not include any special qualification salary available to eligible clerks of circuit court, property appraisers, sheriffs, supervisors of elections, or tax collectors who may have completed a certification program.

The Cities

There are five cities within the boundaries of Manatee County—the City of Palmetto, the City of Bradenton, the City of Anna Maria, the City of Bradenton Beach, and the City of Holmes Beach.

Unlike county commissioners, county constitutional officers, and school board members, the elected officials who serve the city governments do not have their salaries set by the state. City mayor salaries are set by a vote of the city’s commission or council. When it comes to the salaries of city council persons or city commissioners, these elected bodies vote to approve any proposed salary increases or decreases for their elected positions.

The City of Palmetto is home to nearly 14,000 residents and the city government currently employs 115 employees and six elected officials. The city has 142 budgeted positions which includes 124 full-time positions and 12 part-time. Managed by the city’s mayor, the city’s adopted budget for FY23-24 was approximately $42M.

The City of Bradenton Beach has fewer residents than the City of Holmes Beach, with just under 900. The Bradenton Beach City Government employs approximately 27 full and part-time employees. The most recently adopted city budget came in at roughly $4.5M and the city’s elected officials receive modest incomes compared to other local officials. 

Bradenton Beach Mayor John Chappie earns $9,600 annually for his service, while Bradenton Beach Commissioners collect $4,800 a year. The highest-earning city employee is Bradenton Beach Chief of Police John Cosby who receives an annual salary of $131,088. Chief Cosby came into the role in 2021 and oversees a department of eleven officers and two additional staff.

TBT requested the salary information for elected officials in all five city governments located in Manatee County. Unfortunately, the City of Bradenton and the City of Bradenton Beach were unable to produce the information before our publication deadline. TBT will update this story when the information becomes available. 

Update Jan. 30, 7:00 am: 

The City of Bradenton is home to just over 57,200 residents according to estimates by the University of Florida Bureau of Economic Business and Research. The City of Bradenton Government employs 577 staff and has an FY23-24 budget of approximately $183M. 

The city's government organization is led by City Administrator Rob Perry who earns $232,469 annually. 

The City of Bradenton legislative body includes Bradenton City Mayor Gene Brown and a five-member city council.  Mayor Brown receives an annual salary of $79,553,  and each of the city's council members receives $39,776.62 a year for their service. 

Dawn Kitterman is a staff reporter and investigative journalist for The Bradenton Times covering local government news. She can be reached at dawn.kitterman@thebradentontimes.com.

Editor's Note: An early version of this article incorrectly calculated the start and end of state fiscal years and how those align with Manatee County's fiscal year. Corrections have been made to accurately report when the state-determined elected officials' salaries became effective for FY23-24. To learn more about state-determined salaries and effective dates, click here.