Mill Valley’s City Council just voted to raise council compensation to the new $950 monthly cap. This move ties the city to California’s 2024 SB 329 framework and follows trends in Marin County.
Let’s get into what the vote involved. We’ll also look at how nearby towns set their own pay, plus the ongoing debate about whether serving on city boards should come with a stipend at all.
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Mill Valley Raises Council Pay Under SB 329
The council voted 3-2 to boost the monthly stipend for its members from $350 to $950. Mill Valley hadn’t changed its rate since 2007, while other Marin communities already use the new figure.
City Manager Todd Cusimano pointed out that this aligns with SB 329. The 2024 law lets cities with 35,000 or fewer residents set council pay up to $950 per month.
Cusimano’s office checked with neighboring towns to see how SB 329 plays out locally. The survey turned up a mix of responses.
Some towns have adopted the $950 monthly figure. Others take a different approach, depending on their budgets and how they view civic service.
How Mill Valley Compares with Marin’s Other Towns
- Corte Madera — $950 per month
- Larkspur — $950 per month
- San Anselmo — $950 per month
- San Rafael — Mayor $2,357 per month; other council members $1,516 per month
- Novato — $400 per month
- Fairfax — $300 per month
- Sausalito — $300 per month
- Belvedere — No pay
- Ross — No pay
- Tiburon — No pay
Mill Valley now stands with Corte Madera, Larkspur, and San Anselmo at the $950 mark. San Rafael, Novato, and others show a wider range of pay scales across Marin County.
If you drive from Mill Valley to Sausalito along Highway 1, you’ll notice the pay differences reflect each town’s fiscal choices and civic expectations.
Dissent and The Civic-Service Debate
Not everyone in Mill Valley supported the raise. Urban Carmel and Stephen Burke voted no, worrying about the impact on taxpayers and arguing that civic service should stay voluntary.
Carmel wanted a more modest $600 monthly increase, pointing to cost-of-living factors. He emphasized that serving on Mill Valley boards is, at heart, a voluntary civic duty.
Supporters said modern governance takes time—council work, budgeting, meeting with residents. They argued that paying a stipend could help attract qualified people who otherwise couldn’t afford to serve in a pricey place like Mill Valley, or in towns like Tiburon and Sausalito.
It’s a real question: should city council participation be open to more residents, or should it stay a mostly volunteer gig with minimal pay?
Implications for Marin’s Local Governance
The Mill Valley vote sends ripples through Marin’s small towns. In places like Belvedere or Ross, where council members get no pay, residents expect something different from their leaders.
Across San Anselmo, Larkspur, and Corte Madera, new pay levels might spark questions about budgets and the balance between compensation and volunteerism.
As Mill Valley moves ahead under SB 329, leaders in Fairfax, San Rafael, and Novato are watching. Will voters accept the pay framework? Will other towns change their own policies as Marin’s trend evolves?
What’s Next for Mill Valley and the Region?
Get ready for more talks at Mill Valley meetings about money, openness, and what council service actually delivers for the public. These conversations aren’t going away anytime soon.
Marin County’s towns—from Fairfax to Tamalpais and over to Corte Madera—are all tied together. The SB 329 framework keeps pushing local leaders to rethink pay, find good candidates, and walk that tricky line between volunteering and running things like pros.
Here is the source article for this story: Mill Valley City Council raises its pay
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