91原创 Township and 91原创 City spent a combined $114 million on staff salaries and $1.3 million on compensation for members of both councils, the latest figures show.
Just-released council remuneration and statement of financial information reports, for both municipalities in 2024, show that the larger Township council paid its mayor slightly more than the City, while the base rate for City councillors was slightly higher than their Township counterparts. Both were separately released by the City and Township at their June 23 meetings.
The annual reports are required by provincial law.
Not including expenses, Township Mayor Eric Woodward made $168,953, while reported councillor compensation ranged from a base of $62,819 to a high of $71,213 reported for Tim Baillie.
The remuneration report for the year ending Dec. 31 listed a year-end total of $732,886 for the eight-member council.
At $321,792, Jason Winslade, GM, Municipal Administration, Facilities and Corporate Projects, was the highest-paid staffer on the 91原创 Township payroll which totals $97 million for all employees.
City Mayor Nathan Pachal made $139,645, while most members of the six-member City council made between a low of $65,167, and a high of $67,496, the amount reported for Coun. Michael Solyom.
Pachal explained the variance in council compensation in a , saying each member of council holds the deputy mayor role for two months per year.
鈥淒ue to the pay cycles, you may notice slight discrepancies in the remuneration of some council members because of when their deputy mayor service falls,鈥� Pachal said. 鈥淸As well] some members of the council may choose not to receive health or dental benefits, as they may be covered under a family plan with their spouse or another employer.鈥�
In all, City council compensation for 2024 totalled $594,741 with benefits and expenses included.
The highest paid 91原创 City staffer was chief administrative officer Francis Cheung, at $336,904, with a total payroll for all City staffers of $17 million.
In neighbouring communities, publicly available information shows the bigger the population, the higher the council pay.
In Surrey, the mayor received $170,975 and the eight city councillors' salaries were $92,856.
Maple Ridge鈥檚 mayor was paid $143,146 while councillors made $61,000 to $62,000.
Abbotsford鈥檚 mayor got $154,608 while councillor pay ranged between $56,000 and $61,000
In the largest B.C. city, Vancouver paid its mayor $210,444 (plus an annual supplement of $3,048) and members of council get $104,180 (plus an annual supplement of $3,048), according to the Vancouver website.
