Council creates a spending cap for conferences

By Douglas Glynn Midland Free Press February 1 2011
Council has set new expense allowance limits for members attending approved conferences and seminars.

A recent amendment to the expenses bylaw creates a maximum allowance of $2,250 for councillors and $4,000 for the mayor.
As part of a 2008 cost restraint, all councillors – except the mayor – had been limited to attending one conference a year.
The amendment was approved by a vote of 8 to 1.
Coun. Bob Jeffery was the lone dissenter. He argued that Mayor Gordon McKay’s $4,000 expense allowance should be $2,250; the same as that of other council members.
Since the mayor is a member of Simcoe County Council, Jeffery suggested, he might be able to attend some events at the county’s expense.
Deputy Mayor Stephan Kramp reminded Jeffery that while the 2008 cost restraint limited councillors to attending one conference a year, the (then) mayor was able to attend as many conferences as he wanted.
“This ($4,000) does not give the mayor the right to attend an unlimited number of conferences,” Kramp said. “There is a cap on his expenses.”
The current basic salary of council members is $17,398, while the Deputy Mayor receives $25,554 and the Mayor $38,060.