The Union of British Columbia Municipalities’ (UBCM) week-long convention is kicking off Monday in Whistler — and one Coquitlam councillor is hoping a motion she put forward gets seriously looked at.
Teri Towner, who is running for re-election again this year, put forward a motion that was unanimously passed by the city, calling on the UBCM to discuss an independent process that would help local governments set remuneration for elected officials.
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Towner says when council members vote on their own pay increases, it creates mistrust among citizens.
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“So if we can somehow address that and have it so there’s a different way that people who step up to serve their communities as elected officials and how their remuneration is handled, if it could perhaps be looked at it in a different way rather than having elected officials vote on their own raises,” said Towner.
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“It diminishes the trust that people have in elected officials and local government and I’m hoping that it will at least get the conversation started to look at a different way of handling it, so I’m hoping it will pass on the floor from the delegates at the convention this week.”
The issue stems from earlier this year, when Metro Vancouver Regional District Board members voted to give themselves a one-time retirement allowance and pay increase for a package that would have cost taxpayers $500,000.
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