qathet Regional District directors have endorsed recommended changes to directors’ remuneration.
At the Wednesday, December 18, regional board meeting, directors gave approval to remuneration as recommended by a consultant, which streamlines the accounting process. The regional district had hired consultants Dugal Smith and Associates to conduct a review of director remuneration.
At the meeting, Electoral Area B director Mark Gisborne said he did not think he could support the changes to the remuneration bylaw. He said his concern was that any time an alternate director attends a regional district meeting it will increase taxes over the previous model. He said with the model in place, if a director is not able to attend a function, an alternate director attends in their place and is paid what the director would have been paid to attend that meeting.
“As such, I don’t agree with the changes and I’ll be voting against the motion,” said Gisborne.
Chief administrative officer Al Radke said this would not be a massive hit to the bottom line.
“I believe there might be a bit of confusion by saying there is going to be more tax dollars,” said Radke. “In the big scheme of the matter, I don’t believe this will amount to very much.”
The board passed the motion with Gisborne opposed.
According to a report from Smith, 50 per cent of qathet directors’ base remuneration is paid in additional meeting and wage loss allowances each year. The additional meeting and wage loss payments create significant paperwork for both directors and regional district staff.
Smith’s recommendation, to streamline the administrative work, is to incorporate meeting and wage loss allowances into base remuneration. There was also the recommendation that the regional district forego the consumer price index increase in 2020 in light of integration of meeting allowances and base remuneration, and the expected increase in 2019 remuneration.
Smith further recommended that the regional district update directors’ remuneration annually using the BC consumer price index. Smith’s report stated that with remuneration increases projected for 2019 and qathet’s alignment with other regional districts, no increase in overall remuneration appears necessary for 2020.
