BY TRACY LEE TATE
Special to the Times
It’s an election year, and one of the most common questions circulating around the county is, ‘How much does a person in that office earn?’ Although the state actually has more control over how much elected officials are paid (it varies based on county population size), people still want to know how much the officials make in their county. It’s a matter of public record, so it’s no problem to list it here and satisfy the curiosity.
The county constitutional officers, with the exception of the Union County Sheriff, make the same annual salary. These are the Clerk of Court, the Property Appraiser, the Supervisor of Elections, the Tax Collector, and the Superintendent of Schools. All made $113,578 in the last fiscal year (2022-23). The Sheriff makes a bit more, having made $149,428 in the same period.
County Commissioners made $32,491 in the last fiscal year, while School Board members made $30,062 in 2022-23.
All of the above-mentioned officials will serve a four-year term.
While the numbers may seem high for such a small county, population is key in their determination. Six counties (Lafayette, Liberty, Hamilton, Glades, Franklin, and Calhoun) all have smaller populations than Union, and so their elected officials make less than those in Union. In the two largest counties in the state, Duval and Miami-Dade, Duval is bigger in land area but smaller in population, so the officials make more annually.
The salary figures are set by the Florida Legislature’s Office of Economic and Demographic Research, which bases the pay scale on the population served by the officials.
Offices and seats up for election this year (2024) in Union County include Circuit Court Judge (the only elected official who will serve more than four years – the term for this office is six years), all of the constitutional officers mentioned above, County Commission Seats 1, 3 and 5 and School Board Seats for Districts 2 and 4. In the City of Lake Butler, two commission seats are up for election – Seats 1 and 2.
Union County voters have quite a few decisions to make in the coming election. The Times will continue to follow the progress of who is running for these various offices, as well as those on the state and national level, and will keep readers posted on who is running for what so they can make informed decisions about their local government.
