Dec. 10—TRAVERSE CITY — A new policy adopted by the Grand Traverse County Board of Commissioners will help citizens see exactly how much their commissioners get paid for attending special meetings.

Plus, they will learn that information sooner.

These so-called “per diem” payments — the meeting compensation claims that commissioners submit — must now be filed within 93 days of a meeting. Then these claim must be immediately posted on the county website within that time.

In recent years, commissioners’ per diem policy has been a subject of controversy because of a lack of transparency, critics said. In some cases, per diem claims weren’t filed for six months or more after a meeting took place. In addition, some commissioners took home $12,000 or more in per diem payments.

These policies are not standard practice among all counties in Michigan. Records show that about half of Michigan counties do not permit extra per diem payments for elected or appointed officials who also take home a regular salary.

The new policy was approved Wednesday during a regular board meeting. Eight of nine commissioners voted to approve the new policy, with board Chairman Rob Hentschel casting the lone no vote.

Currently, per diem compensation to county commissioners and other appointed county officials is set at $65 for special meetings lasting less than four hours and $110 for meetings lasting more than four hours.

Regular meetings of the board are not eligible for these payments.

In addition to elected county commissioners, appointed members of county boards and authorities also are eligible for meeting compensation at the same rate, plus reimbursement for mileage.

County Administrator Nate Alger emphasized that the meeting compensation rate, set in 2022, is not increasing under the new policy. Rather, the new rules are requiring commissioners to file for payment within 93 days of the meeting for which they claim payment. Those claims will then be posted on the county’s website for public viewing.

In another pay-related issue, the board discussed a new proposal to require fixing salaries for elected county officials and chief deputies earlier in the year.

Currently, annual salaries must be fixed by Nov. 1. That late date means that people seeking public office may not know what the salary will be until long after they file as a candidate for the post. Similar concerns affect applicants for other leadership positions in county government.

County Clerk Bonnie Scheele and Sheriff Mike Shea both support changing the date for salary determinations. Scheele suggested a date of no later than Feb. 1 of each year.

The county board deferred a decision, pending input from counsel. Commissioners indicated that they will consider this request at their next general meeting on Dec. 20.