Plans for a pay raise for future Erie City Council members are in the works as the council passed the first reading of an ordinance in a 4-to-1 vote on Thursday.

In the last few years, there have been several attempts to increase pay for members of Erie City Council. Now, they are one step closer to implementing an ordinance that would increase pay based on experience.

The vice president of Erie City Council said she would like to see this ordinance passed. 

“I understand that it’s a large increase in some people’s eyes, but when you have tried in many years prior to get it moving in that direction…If you want quality people who might not have a good salary or a good regular 40-hour job to actually run for this seat, you might have to compensate them a little bit more than what they’re currently getting,” said Jasmine Flores, Erie City Council vice president.

Erie City Council will revisit this topic at its next meeting on Wednesday, Feb. 22, at 7:30 p.m.