People can count on a few things after winning local elected office.

For better or worse, a seat on a town board or city council means increased public scrutiny and attention on the person’s actions — past, present and future. It means directly changing public policy and the way local government is run, as well as a larger megaphone to advocate for change in areas where the person may not have direct authority.

Being elected to local elected office, however, doesn’t bring much in the way of pay for an often-stressful job that can require the equivalent of a full week of work many weeks. That’s OK for people whose lives are otherwise financially stable. For lower-income or blue-collar workers, it may be harder to justify elected office when the compensation is low.

I generally think people who run for local office are primarily interested in public service rather than how much they’re paid (run for Congress if you want a six-figure salary), but it’s still worth thinking about the compensation question as municipal elections get underway. The elections officially started Friday when filing opened for candidates who want to serve on their city’s or town’s board. Filing continues until July 16.

Candidates who want to run will pay anywhere from $5 to $60 to put their name on the ballot. In return for the filing fee, countless hours fundraising, calling people, shaking hands and campaigning, candidates could be paid anywhere from nothing to the equivalent of a  minimum-wage job.

If you’re thinking about seeking office in Landis this year, the town budgets $7,200 per year to be split between all town board members and the mayor. Incumbents, however, have agreed not to receive pay for their work. As a result, they can truly claim to be public servants. That they’re not being paid could also create some awkward conversations for someone who is primarily interested in public service and also wouldn’t mind a little compensation for their work. In Landis, that works out to slightly more than $1,000 per year for regular council members.

Mayors and mayors pro tem often receive a little more for their service, but the pay would still be less than $2,000 per year in Landis.

In Salisbury, the compensation is $12,269 per year for regular council members, $13,697 for the mayor pro tem and $15,894 for mayor. Each member of the council — mayor, mayor pro tem and regular members also receive a $50 per month technology allowance. If they choose to do so, council members can participate in the city’s health and dental insurance plans.

Council members are able to book trips to conferences or events relevant to their duties as an elected official. A common example are events hosted by the National League of Cities or the N.C. League of Municipalities. Salisbury’s mayor also receives a $300 travel allowance each, which can be used for local trips. The amount is $175 per month for the mayor pro tem and other council members.

Landis in 2015 infamously spent almost $17,000 during a three-day ElectriCities conference in Myrtle Beach and adopted a new, more stringent travel policy after facing public scrutiny. The conference was fine to attend, but spending that much over three days was questionable.

That kind of spending, however, is an anomaly compared to most cities and towns. Newspapers across the country periodically write stories focused on travel spending to catch exactly that.

While they’re not on the ballot until 2022, Rowan County commissioners make slightly more than Salisbury City Council members. The commissioners chairman receives $624 per pay period — the equivalent of about $16,200 per year. Regular commissioners receive $533 per pay period — the equivalent of about $13,800. Commissioners can choose to receive a county-issued cell phone or a monthly allowance. They also receive a travel allowance of $138 per pay period in addition to being reimbursed for travel expenses.

Believe it or not, state legislators such as Sen. Carl Ford and Rep. Harry Warren receive roughly the same base pay as Salisbury’s mayor and Rowan County’s commissioners chairman for their service — nearly $14,000 per year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. A major difference is that they also receive a mileage reimbursement and a per diem for time in session. Legislators also will be on the ballot in 2022, not this year.

Should local elected officials be paid more?

In small towns where budgets are limited, there are simply more pressing items to spend tax dollars on. Salisbury’s and Rowan County’s politics probably mean incumbents say “no thanks” and voters also aren’t keen on the idea now and for the foreseeable future.

A pay raise might pique the interest of blue collar workers who hadn’t previously considered a bid for office and aren’t well-connected, but it could do the same for people who already earn a good salary and have connections that would be beneficial during a campaign.

Pay for state legislators is sort of a different issue because it requires travel to the state Capitol and several days in a row in Raleigh. For some people that’s just not possible without higher pay.

On city and town boards, however, people who run for office mostly are doing so because of an interest in public service and changing policy. For that, time is the most important factor.

Josh Bergeron is editor of the Salisbury Post.