It's a good time to pop the hood on Linn County government

Linn County supervisors were warned about side effects. They put their salary on steroids anyway.

Now, a couple of local guys unhappy with that decision, Richard Bice and Mike Engelken, are starting a drive to collect 10,000 signatures needed to call for the appointment of a county charter commission. That commission could recommend changes in the county's governmental structure. Bice and Engelken would like to see a county manager form of government, where a professional manager runs day-to-day operations with a part-time Board of Supervisors.

They're like a lot of folks who got fired up when the board voted 4-1 earlier this year to raise its annual pay by more than 25 percent. Engelken would slice that paycheck by 50 percent. I'm betting they'll find folks willing to sign on.

But they also know that creating a commission doesn't mean they've created change. County elected officials will appoint most of the commission members, along with local state lawmakers. Many, if not most, of those folks are happy with the way things are, and their appointees likely will reflect those sentiments. The gravitational pull of the status quo is very strong in Linn County government, where most elected officials were previously deputies, and who now are served by deputies with dreams of running for the top job.

At least, with a charter commission, they'll have to defend the merits of how things have always been done, and in public. And they'll need to explain how we can afford it. As of July 1, there will be 18 county employees who make salaries of more than $100,000, and a total of 91 staffers who earn six-figures when you add in the cost of benefits. Within the next decade, with just modest raises, all county elected officials will be earning six-figure base salaries.

(A spreadsheet with total compensation totals for Fiscal Year 2014, prepared by the county auditor, is posted below)

And if the Legislature approves property tax reforms that include tax or spending caps, the status quo may become much less affordable in a hurry. Regardless of what you think of the supervisors, it seems like a good time to pop the hood and have the conversation.

And once that hood's popped, a charter commission has broad latitude to tinker. It can suggest revamping the structure of county departments and consolidating functions. It can even call for combining the duties of elected officials and eliminate offices. Its recommendations must go to voters for approval.

For the supervisors, the bad news is that this process keeps the salary issue alive indefinitely.