Cheney council OKs pay increase

At Tuesday night’s meeting Cheney’s City Council approved an ordinance raising the salary of the mayor and council members by a unanimous 4-0 vote.

Or perhaps, that tally should really read 4-0-3 as, in an unusual move, three members of the council chose to abstain from voting. Councilwomen Teresa Overhauser along with councilmen John Taves and Fred Pollard all declined to cast a vote for an ordinance raising the pay of elected officials for the first time since 1994.

Not only were the voting results unusual, but also the presentation of the ordinance and the discussion itself proved a little...