It was a very quick turnaround at city hall.
The newly amended Council Remuneration and Expense Bylaw was given all three readings and approved Tuesday by council, after considering recommendations from staff from the Sept. 4 meeting about what should be covered on the taxpayer’s dime.
READ MORE: It all started in June
One new element of the bylaw is a requirement to publish a “detailed listing of expenditures” incurred by members of council every year.
Another amendment proposed by Coun. Sue Attrill, and passed, was to add “alcohol” as a type of expense not eligible for reimbursement under the bylaw.
The expenses brouhaha erupted in June when Mayor Sharon Gaetz filed an FOI request to get details about expenses incurred by Coun. Sam Waddington in 2017 while attending out-of-town FCM conferences, such as in-room dining charges for breakfasts that cost $75 and $93.
Recently Waddington tabled a report answering at length the five questions about his expenses totalling about $1,500.
READ MORE: Five questions about expenses
Coun. Jason Lum noted the new language around future conference attendance by council, and that receipts must now be “initialled” by the mayor.
Section 17 now reads: “While attending conferences, Members of Council are authorized to incur, and shall be entitled to reimbursement of, expenses (with the exception of alcohol) for the entertainment of guests of the City or to promote the interests of the City, with these expenditures being subject to the daily per meal reimbursement limits per guest.
“Per diem allotments do not apply to guests, therefore, detailed receipts must be submitted, with guest names and organization, along with the purpose of the meeting itemized. Receipts must be initialled by the Mayor.”
Director of Finance Glen Savard stated that the intent is to have the mayor signing off on expenses to be reimbursed, as a “approval process” for them.
“It’s just acknowledgment,” said Mayor Gaetz, adding it wasn’t checking for accuracy or legitimacy.
Coun. Waddington asked how staff arrived at the tech allowance amount of $55 for cellphones.
“It’s hard to have any kind of plan for $55,” he said.
Coun. Waddington was told by staff they decided to go with a figure somewhere in the middle, between higher and lower end mobility plan costs.
Coun. Stam stated the newly added requirement to publish a “detailed listing” of expenses provides a “much higher threshold” in terms of what is required compared to the SOFI requirements.
“It shows all the numbers,” Stam said.
READ MORE: Answers in detailed report but not everyone satisfied
“But how would we ascertain if it’s true information?” Mayor Gaetz asked.
There was a pause.
“I don’t know, maybe like any other report made around this table, you assume your colleagues are giving correct information,” Lum replied.
“Is the mayor going to initial the report and certify its authenticity? I’m not sure if I would want to be in that position,” Lum added.
After the discussion Coun. Stam praised the result of staff assembling the changes into the amended expenses bylaw.
“It was boiled down into a succinct document,” he said.
They’ll be reviewing the expense bylaw changes they just made in the fourth quarter of 2019, “to ensure relevancy and to make adjustments as needed,” Stam added as an amendment.
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