The tab for city council topped half-a-million dollars in 2022 – a year that included the addition of new councillors and the departure of four incumbent politicians.
A civic election was held on Oct. 15, 2022, with the new council members being sworn in at the Nov. 7, 2022 meeting.
The City of New Westminster’s recently released 2022 statement of financial information showed the total remuneration paid out to local politicians in 2022 was $527,774. Former mayor Jonathan Cote was tops with remuneration of $116,860 followed by former veteran councillor Chuck Puchmayr, who had remuneration of $47,139 and a “transitional allowance” of $47,010.
Former councillors Chinu Das, who was defeated in the election, and Mary Trentadue, who did not seek re-election, each received $46,139 for their service.
The City of New Westminster’s council remuneration policy states that "mayor and council will be entitled to a separation allowance upon completion of their term(s) in office equivalent to 10 per cent of their annual indemnity for each year of service commencing after Dec. 1, 2008 (12-year cap)."
Jacqueline Dairon, the city’s acting director of finance, said Puchmayr received his separation allowance in 2022. She said outgoing council members Cote, Das and Trentadue received their separation allowance in 2023. (Those figures will be included in the 2023 statement of financial information, which will be released next spring.)
Patrick Johnstone, who served as a councillor until being sworn in as the city’s new mayor, had remuneration of $74,041. Councillors Jaimie McEvoy and Nadine Nakagawa, who served on the previous council and were re-elected in 2022, both received $56,167.
Newly elected councillor Ruby Campbell had remuneration of $11,028, while Daniel Fontaine, Tasha Henderson and Paul Minhas each received $9,028.
In addition to their indemnity, councillors receive $1,000 for each month (usually twice a year) that they serve as acting mayor.
Along with remuneration, the statement of financial information also shows council members’ expenses for attending conferences, training and community events. In 2022, council members claimed a total of $17,388 for Union of B.C. Municipalities, Federation of Canadian Municipalities and Lower Mainland Local Government Association conferences and $3,287 for other expenses.
In June, council received a staff report for information purposes that stated councillors and the mayor would be receiving a 6.8 per cent increase to their salary in 2023, as per the city’s 2019 council remuneration policy. As of 2023, the mayor’s annual salary is $147,004 and councillors’ salaries are $56,539.
