Task force recommends boosting councillor pay

A task force is recommending the city increasecouncillorsalaries by about $10,000 a year to match the median full time employment income of the average Londoner.

Councillor salaries haven't increased since 2013.

Right now, the 14 elected officials, excluding the mayor, make just under $37,000. The wage hike, if approved, would increase that to whatever the median full time employment income is for Londoners in 2016.

That information isn't available yet, but in 2010 that figure was almost $48,000.

"The task force came to the conclusion that the median full time income of Londoners would serve as a reasonable and practical benchmark for the rate of compensation for a council member, while being reflective of local economic conditions.

"While the task force's review of comparative municipalities was informative, the public engagement component of the review revealed that there was a clear desire by the public to have a simple, 'made in London' solution that considered local influences and was easy to understand," the task force wrote in its final report, released Wednesday.

The task force's final report will be presented to the city's strategic priorities and policy committee on Monday.

The task force is made up of volunteers, including a retired lawyer and business owner, a professor and two finance administrators.

Other recommendations:

• No extra pay hike for the deputy mayor, partly because who gets the role is at the discretion of the mayor
• No extra pay hike for councillors serving as heads of committees
• Eliminate a rule that makes 1/3 of councillorsalaries tax-free, effective in the next council term.

Recommendations not tied to money:

• Ask the city to establish a reasonable timeframe benchmark for a councillor responses to constituent inquiries.
• Look at how councillors could be better supported in theirpolicy and constituency work.
• Don't tiecouncillor salaries to performance.

Other city council salaries:

In 2016:

• Ottawa - $99,600
• Hamilton - $90,350
• Vancouver - $71,000
• Halifax - $82,650