Council defends annual expenses

By Richard Rolke - Vernon Morning Star - June 11, 2008

Democracy comes with a price. Vernon taxpayers paid out $185,667 for both wages and expenses for mayor and council in 2007. “People may look at it, but it was all city business,” said Coun. Jack Gilroy. Mayor Wayne Lippert earned a salary of $60,027. When $3,653 in expenses are factored in, he received a total of $63,681. Lippert is quick to defend his expenses. “I have to go to conferences to learn about issues going on in the province and the country, and how to make things better in Vernon,” he said. Lippert added that travelling is required to lobby government for infrastructure money. “If you look at the grants we got compared to the related expenses, the payback is huge.”

All six councillors each received $19,364, but expenses varied. Leading the pack was Gilroy with $2,937 in expenses, and he insists that was the result of representing the mayor at some large conferences. “I went to the Council of Forest Industries in Prince George and the RCMP contract talks in Vancouver,” he said. Coun. Juliette Cunningham submitted for $2,145 in expenses, while Coun. Buffy Baumbrough had $715. No expenses were claimed by Councillors Barry Beardsell, Pat Cochrane or Patrick Nicol.

Current council voted Monday to establish a three-member citizens committee to review remuneration for the mayor and six councillors. “It’s always been a struggle for councils to decide what their remuneration should be and this committee gives it an independent look,” said Lippert. And whatever recommendation comes from the committee will only apply to the council elected in November. The new rates would come into force Jan. 1. The volunteer committee members, who will be sought through advertising, will base their review on information from other communities in B.C. But Beardsell is demanding that the committee go beyond that. “With the outrageous amounts of remuneration at the North Okanagan Regional District, I hope the committee takes that into account when looking at remuneration for mayor and council for future years,” he said. “They (three council members) are at NORD on behalf of the city. If they are being paid an excessive amount there, they should be paid less in the city.”