Iqaluit city council gives itself a pay raise
Changes meant to offset how municipal politicians are taxed
Iqaluit city council members and the mayor will receive pay raises on Jan. 1, with the passing of a new council indemnity bylaw. Coun. Kuthula Matshazi asked Coun. Kyle Sheppard for details about the new bylaw changes at Tuesday night’s city council meeting. (PHOTO BY COURTNEY EDGAR)
Iqaluit city council passed a bylaw on Tuesday, Dec. 11, to give the mayor and council pay raises in the New Year.
The bylaw, intended to offset changes in how municipal politicians are taxed by the Canada Revenue Agency, will also allow council members to receive advances for work-related travel expenses.
While council members are currently paid a per-meeting rate that has not been increased since 2004, they will soon receive their pay in the form of annual indemnities.
All four councillors present at the Dec. 11 city council meeting voted in favour of passing Council Indemnity Bylaw 866 at its second reading. It was read for the first and second time on Nov. 27, to fast-track the process so the bylaw can take effect on Jan. 1, 2019.
The bylaw will match the mayor’s salary to that of city directors, who have a multi-step pay scale.
After each 12 months of service, the mayor’s salary will increase one step. Each step sees a raise of about $4,370, maxing out after six years at $145,793.85.
As well, any retroactive pay increases to city staff would also be applied to the mayor.
Mayor Madeleine Redfern’s current salary is $125,169.96. In January, it will go up by about $3,000.
“Council did not change my take-home pay,” Redfern said. “They only ‘increased’ it to offset the loss of the tax-free portion the CRA has eliminated.”
The deputy mayor will receive an annual indemnity of $30,000, while the alternate deputy mayor gets $22,000. Councillors will each receive $20,000, which is twice the amount they currently get, according to Coun. Kyle Sheppard back in September.
For the last 14 years, Iqaluit city councillors have been paid a base rate of $6,000 annually, with additional payments made for meetings they attend, adding up to about $10,000 a year, Sheppard told city council at that time.
“The current system for councillors is $500 per month plus $100 per meeting,” Sheppard said in September. “A meeting only counts if it is an actual council or committee meeting with an agenda. If you chair the meeting, it is $120 instead of $100.”
Additionally, the amended bylaw includes a new travel policy.
“The biggest change is that we are going to allow an advance of up to 80 per cent of the per diem rate for travel as an equality measure, to treat everybody the same, regardless of their financial ability to carry their own expenses throughout travel,” city councillor Kyle Sheppard said.
The travel per diem advances will be approved for municipal business trips planned outside Iqaluit.
In the current indemnity bylaws, council does not receive any travel expenses provided in advance, which poses challenges for some members.
Mayor Madeleine Redfern said that during a recent eight-day work trip, it was difficult for some council members to pay upfront for travel costs of $1,500.
“Not all council members are able to bear such high advanced costs. That is the standard policy with all levels of government and we are just aligning ourselves with that,” Redfern said.
The per diem and allowance amounts will be based on the federal government’s employee travel policies.
It will also include a $250 daily reimbursement for lost wages for city councillors who travel for municipal business, excluding the mayor, if they provide proof of lost wages.
For city councillors who are self-employed as a hunter, fisher, carver or artist, proof of lost wages is not required for that $250 daily reimbursement.
Any councillor who is retired or on social assistance at the time of municipal travel will receive $100 per day.
The mayor will have a separate yearly travel budget. Any travel costs that exceed that budget will need approval from city council before the mayor is able to claim those as an expense.
Raised property taxes and the cost of municipal services so now we can afford to give ourselves a raise! Just what’s wrong with this picture???
Wow just wow. Incompetence at it’s best but we deserve more money…earn it before you get it. Cut costs to taxpayers or improve the conditions and then maybe get a raise not when you’ve done nothing to deserve it. What ever happened to community service..? Everyone is just so caught up in personal greed at the expense of taxpayers.
Although the City has more than doubled in size and its been how many years since council got a raise and the work load has also doubled. Its a piss off to know that the city is owed more than a million in back taxes, and probably water, garbage and sewage bills. They are raising the taxes, water ect… while these negligent people are allowed to continue to be a financial burden on the city and the other rate payers.
An eight day work trip.
WHY, what does that accomplish?
I don’t understand what you guys are groaning about. Aside from the mayor, who relatively recently just got a raise, they haven’t received a raise in almost 15 years. I do take issue with the mayor getting a raise for the sake of offsetting her taxes though. I have my share of complaints about how the city conducts their business, but the rest of the councillors certainly deserve a raise, and people seem to forget, you either voted them in, or you didn’t show up to vote and in both cases it’s your own damned fault if you’re not happy with their decision making.
For the councillors who are on income support or retired, why would you not afford them the same $250 as those who receive it for lost wages, or who are self-employed as hunters, fishers, carvers or artists? They’re doing the work and should be treated equally.
Tax payers vs a raise to Iqaluit council members: the groans come from both parties. What are tax payers paying for, what is lacking in maintenance, what is owed in back taxes, what unnecessary burdens are placed on natural recourses to cover over the top ideas and decisions? The tax payers have been paying higher and higher with less and less. The council members are voted in and voted out. The drag and pull are for the tax payers and council members keep a seat warm.
With this raise, I propose that Mayor and Council hit the streets to enforce the town curfew on a nightly basis.
Good idea. But sadly, the mayor is likely out of town.