C001-05
Council Remuneration and Expenses Policy
Policy Statement
1 Council members are paid remuneration and expenses in relation to the discharge of their duties as an elected official.
Purpose of this policy
2 To ensure that compensation is fiscally responsible and fairly reflects the level of duties and responsibilities of the role of elected officials.
Definitions
5 In this policy
"acting mayor" has the same meaning as in the Council Procedure Bylaw;
"deputy mayor" has the same meaning as in the Council Procedure Bylaw;
"mayor" has the same meaning as in the Council Procedure Bylaw.
Guiding principles
(a) Council members will be paid remuneration, as set out in Schedule“A”.
(b) One-third of the remuneration paid to council members, in accordance with the Canada Revenue Agency and this policy, as an allowance for expenses incidental to the discharge of the duties of their offices, and will be in addition to other expenses specified in this Policy.
(c) The annual remuneration will be paid pursuant to the provisions and policies of the City's payroll system.
Council members are entitled to enroll in basic health and extended health (including dental) for the duration of their elected term.
(3) Reimbursement of additional expenses
(a) Council members, who are appointed as deputy mayor , acting mayor, or as representatives of the council to outside bodies, will be reimbursed for expenses, including, but not limited to, accommodation, transportation, vehicle mileage, memberships relevant to municipal affairs and other allowable expenses, as set out in Schedule “B”, reasonably incurred in the performance of such duties unless the expenses are paid by outside bodies.
(b) Council members, who attend, in person or virtual, conventions, conferences, and seminars, as authorized by the mayor, will be provided an annual conference allowance of $8,500 for the mayor and $7,500 for each councillor for expenses, including: accommodation, transportation, vehicle mileage and other allowable expenses, to be supported by receipts. Meals and incidental expenses will be reimbursed up to the maximum daily allowance, as set out in this Policy.
(c) Council members, who attend community events, as authorized by the mayor, will be provided an annual allowance of $3,000 for the mayor and $1,500 for each councillor and must be supported by receipts.
(a) The maximum allowance to cover travel expenses, including meals, gratuities, local telephone calls, and minor entertainment costs, for trips lasting more than one (1) day away from the City, will be $90 per day, to be supported by receipts. Receipts are not required for expenses up to $75 per day.
(b) Pursuant to paragraph (a), council members may either claim the per diem or submit receipts for a maximum of $90 per day but not a combination of both.
(c) Where meals are included as part of a conference, training seminar, or other business conducted on behalf of the City, which exceed one day, the maximum daily allowance will be reduced as follows:
(i) $20.00 if breakfast is included;
(ii) $25.00 if lunch is included; or
(iii) $30.00 if dinner is included.
(d) For travel expenses incurred internationally, the per diem allowance will be paid in the appropriate international funds or the Canadian equivalent.
(5) Vehicle allowance/use of City vehicle
(a) The mayor is eligible for one (1) of the following:
(i) a monthly vehicle allowance, to be the same as City Manager's montly allowance (in $);
(ii) the use of a City vehicle for civic business use; or
(iii) mileage reimbursement of their personal vehicle on civic business will be reimbursed at a rate consistent with Canada Revenue Agency’s current mileage rate per kilometer.
(b) Any personal use may result in a taxable benefit. Tax considerations regarding choice of options are the responsibility of the mayor.
Where the mayor is not re-elected, the mayor is entitled to receive outplacement assistance at the end of their term in office. To be eligible, the mayor must be unsuccessful in an election bid. Outplacement assistance is in the form of a fixed one-time payment of $5,000 net.
REMUNERATION
Mayor
1 Commencing January 1, 2019, the mayor will be paid remuneration equal to 2.5 times that of councillor salary, per year, adjusted annually, in accordance with section 4.
Deputy mayor
2 Commencing November 7, 2022, the deputy mayor will be paid remuneration equal to councillor's renumeration plus 10% of mayor's renumeration.
Councillors
3 Commencing January 1, 2019, the councillors will be paid remuneration equal to 75% (rounded to the nearest one hundred dollars) of the average annual salary of a full time worker in Abbotsford (calculated from the Statistics Canada Census data from the Statistics Canada website), per year, adjusted annually, in accordance with section 4.
Remuneration adjustment
4 For mayor, deputy mayor, and councillors, annual increases will be applied as follows:
|
Scheduled Increases |
Basis |
|
January 1, 2019 and every year after |
1) Average Abbotsford FT Worker’s Salary utilizing the Statistics Canada Census data from the Statistics Canada website to calculate 2) Years when there is no recent Statistics Canada Census data to use, will utilize the Vancouver CPI from November-November. a. If the Vancouver CPI results in a negative increase, there will be no increase and the status quo remuneration will continue until the following year. |
REIMBURSEMENT OF ADDITIONAL EXPENSES
Accommodation
1 (1) Actual cost for single accommodation or the rate of a standard double occupancy room, supported by a receipt will be paid.
(2) A council member wishing to upgrade their accommodation may do so at their own expense
Transportation
2 Transportation costs for plane, personal vehicle, train and ferry travel will be reimbursed as follows:
(a) Plane - actual air fare at economy or lowest available fare, supported by a receipt.
(b) Personal Vehicle - the lesser of other available transportation at economy fare or mileage may be claimed.
(c) Train – actual ticket fare at economy or lowest available fare, supported by a receipt.
(d) Ferry – actual ticket fare at economy or lowest available fare, supported by a receipt.
Vehicle mileage
3 (1) The use of a council members' personal vehicle on civic business outside of the City will be reimbursed at a rate consistent with Canada Revenue Agency’s current mileage rate per kilometer.
(2) Mileage will be calculated as the lesser of:
(a) the round-trip distance between City Hall and the destination; and
(b) the round-trip distance between the ordinary place of residence and the destination.
Other allowable expenses
4 Other allowable expenses supported by the receipts will be reimbursed, including:
(a) taxi, or car rental costs;
Combining business travel with personal travel
5 (1) A council member wishing to combine business travel with personal travel may do so at their own expense. The council member will be required to pay any additional living and accommodation expenses that are not associated with the business travel.
(2) The City's portion of the air fare will be the lower of:
(a) the actual combined fare; or
(b) the cost of a direct, return flight to/from the business destination based on the lowest excursion or economy fare available on the date of booking.
Electronic devices and accessories
7 (1) Council members will be provided with a cell phone, electronic device (i.e. iPad or Tablet), and related accessories.
(2) Notwithstanding subsection (1), council members may use their personal devices, in such cases, email accounts will be autoforwarded.
(3) Pursuant to subsection (2), council members will be responsible to submit a copy of their monthly invoice for reimbursement. Reimbursement will be to a maximum of $65.00 per billing cycle.