Naples City Council members meet at Naples City Hall. Voters rejected a charter amendment that would have allowed the council to adjust future salaries by ordinance based on Blue Ribbon Committee recommendations.
A referendum that would have allowed Naples City Council to adjust salaries based on a seven-member committee’s recommendations failed, requiring Council to hold a referendum to get voter approval any time the committee recommends a salary increase every four years.
Voter totals, which still must be verified by the county Supervisor of Elections, show 2,469 residents voted no, compared with 1,995 who voted yes. The “no” vote means the City Charter’s current language will be retained, and the specific dollar figures for Council and the mayor will remain in the charter. Any future salary change will require a referendum on a charter amendment that must be approved by voters.
If it had passed, the referendum would have given Council the authority to adjust compensation by ordinance based on Blue Ribbon Committee recommendations. Since 1988, the committee of residents has compared Council salaries with those of similar municipalities every four years to determine whether they should be adjusted.
Salaries have traditionally been low. Last October, Council accepted the committee’s recommendation and voted to increase salaries 22% and monthly stipends by $100. As it had in the past, the committee didn’t recommend a pension; health benefits are the same as those provided to city employees.
Council agreed Mayor Teresa Heitmann’s yearly salary would rise to $66,002, with a $500 monthly stipend, bringing her annual compensation to $72,002, while Council members’ salaries would increase to $52,826, with a $400 monthly stipend, bringing annual compensation to $57,626. The raises became effective after the February 2026 city elections.
Because the charter spells out specific dollar figures, changing them required an amendment, which, under state law, must be approved by voters in a referendum. In May, Council unanimously approved a charter amendment ordinance that removed specific dollar figures from the charter and gave Council authority to adjust salaries by ordinance in the future based on Blue Ribbon Committee recommendations. However, Council also voted to place the charter amendment on the ballot for voter approval.
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