Northern California county official convicted of corrupt pay raise, authorities say

A former human resources director for a Northern California county was convicted of misleading county officials to give herself a 43% pay raise, Plumas County authorities said.

Nancy Selvage, 70, was convicted Tuesday of violating a law that prohibits public officials from entering into government contracts in which they possess a financial interest, prosecutors said in a news release. She was the former human resources director for Plumas County.

“This is an exceptionally important case and conviction for Plumas County,” the Plumas County District Attorney David Hollister said in the news release. “While our local system of checks and balances were challenged, they held and protected Plumas County from corrupt acts. Ultimately, the fact remained, no person can force the residents of Plumas County to live and work in a corrupt county.”

Selvage had recommended a series of pay raises for department heads on May 24, 2022 to the Plumas County Board of Supervisors, according to the Plumas County District Attorney’s Office. She proposed giving herself the highest pay raise, more than leaders of the Sheriff’s Office and Social Services Department, despite concerns of pay parity, prosecutors said.

The pay raise negotiations arose after the county’s auditor and county administrator had left their respective positions, prosecutors said. Plumas County employees had voiced concern about not receiving pay raises, leading to staff departures that prosecutors said affect residents’ safety.

Selvage did not inform the Board of Supervisors about her own pay raise until the morning of the vote, and with information that was “inaccurate and misleading,” the release said.

She falsely claimed all the raises could be maintained within each department’s budget. However, the pay hikes would add about $500,000 to the county’s budget. Selvage also backdated documents to make it appear as if they had been consistent with the state’s open meetings laws known as the Brown Act, prosecutors said.

Her sentencing hearing is scheduled for May 16. A judge may order her to repay Plumas County $103,679.63, according to the District Attorney’s Office. She is also barred from ever holding public office, according to the Fair Political Practices Commission.

Prior to her raise, Selvage made $89,948.24 in 2021, according to payroll data maintained by nonprofit Transparent California. The following year, when she would have received a pay hike for about six months, she was paid $113,804.40, according to Transparent California.

In 2023, the nonprofit recorded Selvage’s salary as $133,235.21.