Kelowna city councillor Michele Rule has filed more expense claims than Mayor Sharon Shepherd in the past five years. Since 2006, Rule has claimed $28,293 in expenses, mostly for travel costs and conference fees. By contrast, Shepherd, who became mayor in the fall of 2005, has had expense claims totaling $27,214. "For the most part, councillors cover their own out-of-pocket expenses for attending various functions. That‘s part of the reason why part of their remuneration is tax free," city finance director Keith Grayston says. Provincial law requires all B.C. municipalities to release councillor expenses from the previous year by the end of June. Most of the expenses for which councillors are reimbursed relate to things such as attending the Union of British Columbia Municipalities annual conference, or a similar gathering sponsored by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, Grayston said. In 2010, for example, Rule was one of six councillors who attended the UBCM conference in Whistler. She also went to a separate local government conference held at Sun Peaks Resort near Kamloops, and represented the City of Kelowna on a visit to its sister city of Veendam, Netherlands. All city councillors earn a base salary of $31,000, one-third of which is tax free. Councillor pay has increased 50 per cent over the past decade. Councillors are legally obligated to attend only the weekly Monday meeting and the public hearings that are normally held every second Tuesday. They are not paid extra for other civic meetings or community gatherings that they may attend. According to the city website, Rule, who does not have a paid job outside of her activity as a councillor, is a member of 14 various committees. The average councillor sits on five committees. Historically, because of the relatively little level of time commitment specified by legislation, the position of city councillor has been seen as a part-time one. The mayor‘s position, which is considered full-time, paid Shepherd just under $90,000 last year, one-third being tax-free. Increasingly, however, city councillors have suggested their workload amounts to far more than would normally be associated with a part-time job. Last month, a citizens‘ volunteer committee suggested that councillors‘ pay be frozen for two years, an idea that didn‘t appear to go over well with some of the elected representatives. "It (being a councillor) is not really a part-time job if you want to give it the respect it deserves," Hodge said. "This community needs to be aware that we are putting our heart and soul into this job," Rule said.
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Taxpayers get good payoff, says Rule
Item 6.05 - 2010 Annual Report.pdf (1013kb) (2011-06-23) (P.7 Council Remuneration)
1 comment:
I wonder if she also received expenses from SILGA and UBCM.
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