Members of the next Minto town council will be getting a higher rate of pay than current councillors.
However they won’t be able to claim per diem rates for attending ceremonial events, meetings with staff or other unspecified council business.
A new remuneration bylaw passed at the Sept. 2 meeting increases the base salary for the mayor from $11,440 to $15,500, an increase of $4,060 or 35 per cent. The bylaw also increases the deputy mayor’s base pay from $9,440 to $12,500, a difference of $3,060 or 32%; and annual pay for the five councillors from $8,440 to $10,500, a raise of $2,060 or 24%.
The bylaw also clarifies the type of activities for which per diem claims will be paid. Previously, functions such as grand openings were covered under “council business,” which left a situation where some council members were claiming attendance and others were not.
The new bylaw states base pay will cover preparatory work for meetings, site visits, attendance at grand openings, ceremonial functions, Chamber of Commerce events, informal or formal meetings with staff, interactions with the public (calls, meetings, emails), and any other duty or responsibility not specifically identified.
Council members will continue to receive an additional $50 for attending meetings of council and committee of the whole meetings, including budget deliberations.
Council members will also receive $85 for up to four hours and $150 for more than four hours when attending meetings of standing committees, committees under the town’s appointment bylaw, conferences, conventions, educational sessions and meetings of provincial boards (i.e. AMO, OSUM, OGRA, ROMA), including travel to and from such functions. These rates remain unchanged from the previous bylaw.
Mileage for travel outside the town will be paid at the rate set for staff, and councillors will receive a meal allowance of up to $80 per day when on the road.
Council members will receive an equal cost of living increase whenever such an increase is approved for municipal staff by resolution at an open council meeting, unless the resolution specifically excludes council members.
The bylaw was passed unanimously at the Sept. 2 meeting, with all council members present.
The vote was recorded at the request of councillor David Turton, who initiated discussion on remuneration in March of 2013, when he questioned why there was such a large difference in compensation between the highest- and lowest-earning members of council.
Remuneration has been the topic of considerable discussion at several meetings over the past 18 months.
Staff crafted the new bylaw based on a report presented at the June 17 meeting. At that time, CAO Bill White pointed out a comprehensive remuneration survey conducted recently by Centre Wellington indicated the base pay for Minto’s mayor and councillors was the lowest of 15 municipalities surveyed.
White also noted base pay for Minto council members had not been increased since 2007.
