Charleston County Council members on July 22 voted to approve a $4.2 million increase to the 2025-26 budget to give county employees a one-time $2,000 bonus to improve retention.
The measure passed its second reading with eight council members voting in favor and one voting against it. The sole vote against the bonuses came from council Vice-chair Larry Kobrovsky, who said he fears a $4 million expenditure could make it difficult for the county to avoid raising taxes on residents.
“This applies to all employees, and some of them make close to or in excess of $400,000 when you consider their benefits,” he said at the meeting. “I don’t think we would do this if it was our own money. This takes away from our ability to not raise taxes on constituents. This is not just Monopoly money that we can just give out.”
Kobrovsky, who represents District 2 east of the Cooper River, proposed an amendment to the measure to limit the employees who would get the bonuses to only those making under $75,000. It was not clear how much that would alter the final price tag of the bonuses.
Former county Chairman Teddie Pryor of North Charleston questioned why the cutoff was suggested at $75,000 and that restricting the bonuses to lower-income employees punished people for making more.
County Administrator Bill Tuten said at the meeting the county is experiencing difficulties with employee retention across the board. Some council members agreed that an amendment was worth discussing, but ultimately decided the risk of losing employees warranted the higher cost.
“I am very sensitive to Kobrovsky’s thinking on this,” councilman Rob Wehrman, who represents District 3, said at the meeting. “It seems like we’re narrowly avoiding potential tax increases, and I do think we have an obligation to explore every possibility. … But if we have a mass exodus from the county, that’s going to create a whole host of other problems, including budgetary.”
Kobrovksy told the Charleston City Paper there were other things the county could prioritize for the budget.
“Why are we paying these people who make six-figure salaries a $2,000 bonus when that could be used for any number of other things — roads, flooding prevention. I just feel that it’s wrong.”
Council member Joe Boykin, who represents District 8 that includes Johns Island, told the City Paper that the county’s finance department was able to work the cost into the budget effectively in lieu of overall salary increases.
“This is just meant to get us through this budget cycle,” he said. “Next year, we’re going to have to come up with another way to keep county salaries competitive to keep the employees that we have.
“This was a sage decision and way to address this,” Boykin added. “I know they’re working literally as we speak to come up with another way to come up with ideas to address this more holistically over the long term.”
The $4.2 million will be taken from the county’s fund balance, the surplus left at the end of a budget year. The surplus builds from budgeted items that are ultimately not expended, such as salaries that are funded for positions left unfilled.
“We typically treat the fund balance as a means to cover one-time expenditures,” Boykin said. “For example, if we needed extra ambulances or some type of equipment that needed to be upgraded — we know it’s not a recurring item on our budgets.”
A third and final reading for the ordinance will be during the Aug. 26 council meeting.
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