What your councillors earned and spent in 2016
Mayor John Henry city's top earner, topping total payout of more than $100,000, when including benefits and perks, seven councillors top six-figure mark
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
In a bit of good timing, following the release of Ontario’s Sunshine List, the City of Oshawa has recently released the final salaries given to the mayor and members of Oshawa council for 2016.
In terms of total remuneration from the City of Oshawa, council’s top earners over the past year were Councillors Bob Chapman and Amy McQuaid-England, both breaching the $60,000 threshold with Chapman earning $61,011 and McQuaid-England earning $60,670.
Councillor John Aker followed with a total remuneration of $58,064, followed by Councillors John Neal and Doug Sanders who also both earned over $58,000.
A councillor’s final pay includes a base salary of $25,653 (a slight increase over 2015 at $25,337), benefits, and stipends for deputy mayor, committee chairs and vice chairs and a one-third non-taxable portion of their salary. Councillors also receive a retirement allowance upon request (taken advantage of by all council, save for Mayor John Henry), along with a $5,200 car allowance.
For Henry, his remuneration pushed above the $100,000 threshold for the first time, as his base salary of $62,302 was supplemented by $31,151 in other allowances, almost $5,000 in benefits and a car allowance for a total of $101,621.
In terms of extra expenses, Sanders, with bills of $1,481, was the highest, while Councillor Nester Pidwerbecki followed with $948 in expenses and Chapman with $702.
Expenses include communications, advertising, civic receptions and meals, and seminars and training.
On top of remuneration from the city, those councillors elected as regional representatives receive pay from the Region of Durham as well.
The top regional council earner last year was Pidwerbecki, whose total remuneration was padded by an additional $10,701 in travel costs for his trip to France and Spain with regional representatives to explore the feasibility of anaerobic digestion. In total, he received $72,602 in regional remuneration.
Councillor Dan Carter followed with a total of $64,058, and Chapman with $63,543.
As it stands, if the remuneration from the region and the city were combined, Henry would find his name on the Sunshine List. However, because it is received separately, his name is not included on the list.
The remuneration bylaw for councillors was established in 2005.
