FAIRHOPE, Ala. — The city’s Financial Advisory Committee decided Thursday to submit a budget to the City Council that will not include the administration’s proposed salary increases for municipal employees for the 2010 fiscal year.

The proposed 3 percent cost-of-living increase and additional merit raises for some employees will be referenced and itemized in the budget documents but will not be included in the total recommended budget amounts said Chuck Zunk, the committee’s chairman.

The committee voted over Mayor Tim Kant’s objections to this procedure, who said the committee did not have the authority to make such a recommendation.

The council will make the ultimate decision regarding the budget, which will be adopted later this month or in early October, Zunk said.

Zunk provided details on the budget figures regarding the proposed salary increases, which the committee decided will be included as a footnote to the recommended budget, based on information provided to the committee by the city.

The current base salary cost for all employees is $10,991,000, with current estimated overtime at $334,000, for a total of $11,325,000, he said.

Based on that amount, the proposed COLA increase for the next year would be approximately $381,000, and the proposed merit raises totaled $87,000, he said.

The committee also reviewed the answers to 38 questions about budget figures it had posed to city staff during its last meeting two weeks ago.

“I want to compliment all of the staff, especially Rose Fogarty, Nancy Wilson, Gregg Mims and James Gillespie, who worked very hard to answer all these questions,” Zunk said. “I think they’ve done an outstanding job.”

The committee’s next meeting is at 3 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 22, in the Delchamps Room at the Civic Center.