I think Woodlands County Fort Assiniboine councillor Dale Kluin said it best: it is time for councillors to show some leadership and say no to a pay increase.
Unfortunately, that is not what they did last week.
Although they didn’t come right out and say it, one can only assume the purpose of an ad-hoc councillor compensation review committee is to approve a raise.
The County of Barrhead has done the same thing by forming its own councillor compensation committee, but there is one important difference: Barrhead’s committee will be independent of council.
While I understand council’s desire for better compensation — hands up if you want more money at your job — whether they deserve it is another issue.
Being a councillor in a small community is a part-time job. Yet in Woodlands County and the County of Barrhead, they are compensated as if it is a full-time position, and they make a salary as many people who are working full-time.
And that isn’t including the one-third tax benefit they received until Jan. 1 of this year, or the fact that councillors have their travel expenses covered. How many employers give their employees gas money to come and go to work? I imagine not many.
I also took a not so quick look to see how much some of the other communities I have lived in compensated their elected officials.
I started with what I consider my hometown Creston, B.C. In 2018, according to the statement of financial information, the mayor and councillors were paid between $11,000 and $14,000 and $27,000 for mayor, not including expenses.
In Peachland, the mayor received a little over $36,000 in 2018 while councillors’ pay was under $15,000. In Kelowna, the mayor receives a little more than $107,000 and councillors take home $36,543.33.
Our new premier Jason Kenney says his government hopes to bring back the Alberta Advantage. It appears one of those advantages is being an elected representative in a small municipal government.
I used to joke with former Barrhead Leader reporter Rick De Vries, a county resident who would come into the office fuming over councillor’s compensation, that he should quit and run for county councillor because he would get an automatic pay raise with or without the one-third tax subsidy. Certainly, the hours would be better.
Now I don’t want to seem like I am picking on Woodlands and County of Barrhead councillors. Other municipalities across the county have given themselves a pay raise to compensate for the lost tax exemption. And I am sure many other communities pay their elected officials similarly.
What I am trying to point out is there is a good argument to be made for toeing the line, especially for two municipalities whose councillors are frequently reminding its residents about the tough financial straights the communities are facing.
I hope the two committees for both municipalities keep that in mind when they make their recommendations.
