“There are too many employees not receiving 35 plus percent raises and too many times I hear that there is not a pot of money for this or that,” he wrote.

The five-member committee meets every four years to offer its input on elected officials’ salaries. The executive branch is responsible for appointing two members, and another two members are appointed by the legislative branch. The other four select the fifth member.

In 2015, the committee recommended that Principal Chief Baker receive a $5,000 pay increase annually for four years, with a $3,000 annual increase for Deputy Chief Joe Crittenden, $2,000 annual raises for each member of the Tribal Council and a $12,000 stipend for the council’s speaker.

Cherokee Nation spokeswoman Julie Hubbard confirmed Friday that the committee began compiling the necessary data for its recommendation almost four months before the tribe’s general election. In addition to looking at market data, the committee members also weighed the salaries of elected officials of other area tribes.