FRISCO, Texas -- A Collin County commissioner said Spanish-speaking county employees should not be paid more than people who are not bilingual.

---

Video: Commissioner Wants Same Starting Salary For Bilingual Employees

---

Collin County employees who speak Spanish receive a starting salary that is 3 percent higher than that of non-bilingual employees.

County commissioner Jerry Hoagland is proposing the salary difference be eliminated.

"I don't believe we should be compensating employees more just because they can speak Spanish," he said. "This is America, and I believe people ought to be able to speak the English language."

Hoagland said the practice enables people to not learn English.

County judge Keith Self said employees who are fluent in other languages don't get 3 percent more money.

"Why then do we have low expectations for our Hispanic citizens?" he said.

But county tax assessor Kenneth Maun said work would be much more tedious if he didn't have bilingual employees.

"I have to serve these people," he said. "I need to have people that can communicate with them."

Without incentives, his Spanish-speaking employees often leave for higher-paying jobs, he said.

"We never have as many as we'd like," Maun said.

Hoagland said the policy digs into the pockets of taxpayers.

"It's not the taxpayers responsibility to provide them with a Spanish-speaking person," he said.

Hoagland said people who need a translator should bring someone with them who can interpret.

"Nowhere in the Constitution that I've read does it say that you have to speak English in this country," Adrian Rodriguez, of LULAC, said.

Self said only about 20 Collin County employees receive the extra pay for being bilingual.

County commissioners will discuss the issue on Tuesday.