Juneteenth observance would cost city $2M by 2030

It would cost the city of Maricopa a quarter-million dollars to allow city employees to take Juneteenth as a holiday on June 19 this year. 

That amount would grow over the next decade to about $460,000 yearly, according to records from the city manager’s office obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request this week. 

City Councilmember Henry Wade first proposed the city holiday. 

The City Manager’s Office said the numbers were based off an actual holiday payroll date from last year. The annual increases through the year 2034 were based on an annual growth in operating expenditures of 6.6%, a historical general fund growth trend. 

So, the payroll cost of city employees taking the Juneteenth holiday would grow by 6.6% until the amount about doubles in 10 years. 

Juneteenth is a portmanteau of June and nineteenth, also known as Freedom Day, Jubilation Day, Liberation Day and Emancipation Day.  

It is a celebration of the emancipation of people who were enslaved in the U.S. Originating in Galveston, Texas, it is now a federal holiday. It is commemorated on the anniversary date of the June 19, 1865, announcement by Union Army General Gordon Granger, proclaiming freedom from slavery in Texas.  

This year is the fourth year Juneteenth is recognized as a federal holiday, and an increasing number of employers are including it on holiday calendars.  

Councilmember Wade proposed making it a city holiday during the City Futures Planning gathering Feb. 8. 

“What I’m asking for is to recognize it as a city holiday and that city employees actually get the opportunity to take the day off,” Wade said to council members and city officials, including City Manager Ricky Horst. 

“It is recognized as a state holiday in Arizona and a national holiday as well, but the city employees still have to come to work,” Wade said, adding that by honoring the holiday “we as a community can celebrate.” 

Councilmember Vincent Manfredi asked about the financial impact of the proposed city holiday.  

“That’s probably what we’re going to have to look at,” Manfredi said. “What is it going to cost the city to do that?” 

Manfredi asked Wade about employees using it as a floating holiday in which an employee could choose whether to take Juneteenth as a holiday. 

Wade responded: “If that’s the way we can effect that change into our system, then I would say yes.”  

He said many people in the city were asking him why the city does not recognize Juneteenth. 

Editor’s note: Vincent Manfredi is an owner of InMaricopa.