Hugh Mackenzie
Huntsville Doppler
When it comes to District government in Muskoka, I thought it couldn’t get worse than the bureaucratic nightmare we have now but I was wrong. Last week, District Council voted to increase the annual stipend for a District Councillor from $16,750 to $21,280 per year. They also voted to increase the compensation for the District Chair from $74,500 (which includes a car allowance of $7,200) to more than $95,000 per year. To be fair, the increases will not take effect until the next term of Council in December of this year and they will be phased in over its four-year term. District councillors also sit on their local councils so their total pay, at taxpayer’s expense, will be close to $40,000 a year. (Note – remuneration at the local level varies by town and township.)
What does that work out to an hour?
Now let’s put this in perspective. District councillors can bob and weave all they like, but the hard facts are that very few of them spend more than 15 hours or so a month on District business. This includes reviewing agendas and preparation time but does not include drive times from more distant municipalities like the Township of Georgian Bay. I have confirmed the extent of this workload with some of the more dedicated District councillors. Right now, that means they are making over $100 an hour for District business. At the end of the next term of Council it will be over $150 an hour.
District councillors were presented by staff with three options in relation to remuneration. It should come as no surprise that they picked the most expensive one. You can bet your boots that most of the councillors who voted for these increases will be at the front of the line for re-election next time around.
Until recently, elected members of municipal councils were able to receive one third of their salary tax free. This was intended to compensate for expenses, but most municipalities now pay for out-of-pocket expenses, including mileage. So, quite properly, the Government has ended this practice. However, as part of their compensation package, District Council is effectively clawing back this perk by adding to their remuneration the net effect of money previously saved by being tax exempt. They will still get their expenses paid.
Some have argued that the dramatic increase in the salary for the District Chair is justified as he or she will now be elected at large. I have a problem with this argument as the actual duties and responsibilities of the Chair will not change. To be sure, there will be costs involved in a District-wide election, but that is not a compensation issue and there are election financing rules in place for candidate fundraising.
How did our local District reps vote?
I asked Huntsville’s District councillors how they voted on the motion to dramatically increase the remuneration for Council and the District Chair. Mayor Scott Aitchison was unable to attend the meeting but has told me that he will speak against the increases when the minutes come before the next council meeting for approval. Deputy Mayor Karin Terziano was the only member present at District Council who voted against the salary increases. Councillor Nancy Alcock voted for the motion. She tells me she did so reluctantly as she would have preferred a less expensive option, but it was not an option put before Council for a vote. Councillor Brian Thompson also voted in favour of the pay increases. Five District Council members were absent from the meeting, including Lake of Bays Mayor Bob Young.
I believe that most Councillors in Huntsville, if not in all of Muskoka, would agree that the heavy lifting in terms of their work as elected officials is at the local level. That is where they relate to their constituents and that is where they have more of a hands-on approach to issues and policies that affect the municipality. I do not begrudge them the stipend they receive as Huntsville councillors. That is not the case at the District level however and it makes no sense to me that the work of a District councillor should be worth more than the work done and paid for at the local level.
District Government is growing out of control.
The District has more than 530 full-time equivalent employees and an annual budget of over $73 million, not including sewer and water. There is little accountability and scant evidence that District councillors really want to rein in the bloated bureaucracy. The status quo seems to be okay for them. It is also worth noting that through three and a half years of their term, there has been no agreement on reducing the number of councillors at the District level, even though Muskoka has more elected officials than the city of Toronto! This, of course, should have been dealt with before any new compensation packages were agreed to. Instead, it seems that a much higher priority for Council is to ensure its place on the District gravy train.
What a bloody shame.
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Hi Hugh,
You may recognize the name above, I’m one of your brothers-in-law.
As with all those who have responded before me, I want to commend you for bringing this issue to the community.
This current issue of District Council compensation is just the latest manifestation of the problems of district government. Like those who have commented before me, I am perplexed by the problem, but feel woefully uninformed to propose a solution. You however, don’t share this problem!
Your background as a former town Councillor, town Mayor and District Chairman, make you uniquely qualified to lead an ongoing community debate on the future of District Government in Muskoka. Moreover, Doppler, as a virtual community newspaper, is the perfect vehicle to initiate and sustain an ongoing debate on this issue.
I would like to encourage you and Doppler to take up this challenge.
I believe all of Muskoka would benefit from the following:
A history lesson on the background of District Government in Muskoka.
A review, from your perspective, of the benefits and shortcomings of District Government as we know it.
An ongoing moderated forum to encourage all interested parties to engage in a debate of the future of District Government in Muskoka.
In my opinion, Muskoka and quite probably the province as the founder of District Government would both derive substantial benefit from this exercise.
Like so many Doppler readers, I’ll be watching for your response.
Sounds like it is time to call in the Province ?? or someone to get the District Spending Machine under control.
This has gone on long enough we are way over governed and are paying for it to continue!!!
Thank you Hugh. my sentiments exactly.
This is ridiculous. I and most of the people I know who work hard 40 or more hours a week have not received a raise in years. If we don’t get an increase of cost if living why are council getting one. Don’t they work for the people? This is crap.
I believe that councillor salaries should be determined by an independent authority.
Councillors should have the option to refuse the pay raise and lock themselves into the “former” rate for their entire term or suggest a binding lower whole term rate for themselves if they feel it would be more appropriate.
It is pretty easy to miss a meeting and not be on record voting for a raise or even more crafty, to speak against the raise knowing that it will be approved and that you’ll cash in while hopefully being seen as in opposition to it.
Require council and chairmanship candidates to state what salary they will accept BEFORE they are elected.
Time to sort out the sheep from the goats!
Also we need term limits. Two at the most, local and District inclucive.
Hugh, Thanks for your investigative work and giving us the facts. A “bloody shame” ? I couldn’t agree more.
Hugh, unfortunately, I could not attend the meeting but I did send an email to the District Clerk with a requedt it be circulated to all Councillors. In this email I said that I supported the lowest increase suggested by Staff.
Pity about the Council decision. The great fat spending machine continues.