In San Jose, the hotly debated "Pay for Performance" policy is stirring up tensions between City Council members and Mayor Matt Mahan. The mayor is championing a proposal that challenges the salary structure of city officials by linking pay to achieving citywide goals. If city leaders fail to meet 100% of their targets, they could face up to a 5% deduction in their salaries, San José Spotlight reported.
The mayor's stance, as detailed in a post from his official account, emphasizes the essence of the initiative. "I’m tired of my fellow Democrats crying authoritarianism whenever they disagree with something — that is something that shouldn’t be taken lightly or used as a catchall for discontent," Mayor Matt Mahan stated.
I’m tired of my fellow Democrats crying authoritarianism whenever they disagree with something — that is something that shouldn’t be taken lightly or used as a catchall for discontent.
— Mayor Matt Mahan (@MattMahanSJ) June 4, 2025
The point of our Pay for Performance initiative is not that we agree on every program or… pic.twitter.com/Vht5fHXUb4
However, this plan has not sat well with some San Jose City Council members. Councilman David Cohen disapproved, comparing it to "straight out of the toolkit of authoritarian governments where they’re trying to quell dissent." He advocates for accepting diverse decision-making approaches, "In a representative democracy where we have 11 elected officials trying to make decisions, every vote shouldn’t be unanimous. We should accept the fact that people have different ideas on how to get to the solution," Cohen told the Washington Examiner.
Despite these concerns, proposal proponents, like Councilman George Casey, see potential in Pay for Performance to reconnect politicians with community interests. "There’s a level of malaise and apathy folks have towards our political process, and the disconnect they believe exists between local politicians and actual issues that are important to them," Casey said during a meeting, highlighting that such measures are already prevalent in the public and private sectors, San José Spotlight noted.
