The Androscoggin County sheriff will receive a raise next year after all.

After commissioners voted last month to keep the sheriff’s annual salary at $104,896 through 2026, county Administrator Jeff Chute said Monday that the sheriff will get a 2.5% cost-of-living pay increase this year, the same as other elected officials and nonunion employees.

The sheriff’s salary on Jan. 1, 2027, will then revert to a minimum of $104,896 for whoever wins the November election, though commissioners can adjust the pay upward.

Prior to the 2026 budget approval, commissioners had approved a 2.5% cost-of-living increase for elected and nonunion positions. Though Chief Deputy William Gagne was given the same increase, Sheriff Eric Samson was not.

Samson had requested an 8.75% pay increase for himself and Chief Deputy William Gagne in the 2026 budget, which was approved by commissioners and the Budget Committee.

However, prior to Dec. 17, the majority of commissioners voted to set the annual salary for elected sheriff at $104,896 beginning Jan. 1, 2027. The salary has to be set before nomination petitions become available for the November election, which in this case was Jan. 1.

“I am fine with the cost-of-living adjustment provided for both the Chief Deputy and I,” Samson wrote in an email Monday. “As previously stated, and explained to the commissioners, I had budgeted an amount to keep the Chief Deputy and I on par with the administrative staff here.”

There are four members of the administrative team beyond the chief deputy and sheriff that will receive the 8.75% increase.

“I would hope in the future the Commissioners will address the salary of the Chief Deputy reflective of his duties and responsibilities where he now has people under his command earning a higher salary than him,” Samson wrote.