The city treasurer has released a report detailing how much members of council earned in 2019 and how much they expensed.
The total remuneration and expenses paid to council members and others by the city, as well as outside organizations and local boards, for last year was $642,215.12.
Barrie Mayor Jeff Lehman said council remuneration is checked every term by an independent committee.
"It is relatively low compared to many cities our size, in part because councils have often turned down the committee’s recommendations to increase it," Lehman told BarrieToday. "I think councillors do a lot of work for their salaries.
"On the expense side, these amounts are also lower than in many other cities and most of the expenses are associated with communicating with residents," he added.
For council salaries, Lehman led the group at $124,040. This includes an honourarium of $118,040 as well as a $6,000 car allowance.
Deputy Mayor Barry Ward follows at $46,626, which includes a $3,300 car allowance. He is also the councillor for Ward 4.
The rest of council earned $40,424, which includes a base salary of $38,324 and a $2,100 car allowance each.
Doug Shipley, who resigned his Ward 3 council seat last fall after being elected as MP in Barrie-Springwater-Oro-Medonte, drew a salary of $26,237.20 from the city in addition to a $1,400 car allowance during his time on council in 2019.
The treasurer's report also notes the mayor's remuneration associated with his appointment to the board of directors of PowerStream Holdings Inc., now Alectra. While the mayor is a member of the Alectra board and is included in the city hall memo, he was appointed by the Barrie Hydro Holdings board, not by the City of Barrie.
In his role with Alectra, Lehman earned an additional $47,500 as a member of power utility's board of directors. He's a member of their audit, finance and risk management committee.
The city finance department's report also includes a summary of expenses from councillors.
Corporate expenses include payments made on behalf of council members from public funds, which would include payments made directly to suppliers for items such as cellphones, internet service and office expenses. These expenses are not included against council members’ budgets.
Council expenses include the costs associated with attending events on behalf of the city, such as hosting guests, communication materials and travel costs.
As the head of council, Lehman topped the list with $12,381.43 in council expenses as well as $1,189.72 in corporate expenses, for a total of $13,571.15.
A lot has changed since Lehman was first elected to council in 2006.
"There is more spending focused on technology, but good, old-fashioned newsletters are still a tool used by many, including myself," he said. "I would say probably the amount spent on ward events, like barbecues, has dropped off a lot over the years; that used to be something more members of council did. I’d also be in that category.
"When I started as mayor (in 2010), we did that a few times and haven't in years. I’m guessing, especially this year, there will be very little spending on events for obvious reasons," added Lehman, alluding to COVID-19.
Ward 9 Coun. Sergio Morales was second on the list at $9,232.25, which includes $8,647.87 in council expenses and $584.38 in corporate expenses.
Morales says his expenses fall within the parameters out what's permitted by the city.
“Councillors cannot spend a penny over the budget they are allocated based on the size of their ward," Morales told BarrieToday. "Ward 9 has lots going on, from thousands of proposed houses and condos, a future rec centre, and the widening of Mapleview (Drive)."
Morales said he's doing what he can to communicate with his constituents.
"Many of these new Ward 9 residents come from the GTA where councillors are full-time with dedicated staff," he said. "And while we in Barrie are part-time (councillors) and do not have dedicated staff, we can use our budget to bridge that gap of what they expect and what we can provide."
Morales says his budget has evolved over the last few years since he was first elected to council in 2014.
"I’ve gone from newsletters only to social media-sponsored posts, to local radio, to a hybrid of all," he said. "The three things that have not changed is having a website and fridge magnet, and doing my annual Christmas card that highlights a known part of our city every year. Ward 9 families and seniors love it; I actually get messages from residents worried the wind blew it away if I haven’t delivered it quickly enough.”
Ward, the deputy-mayor, ranked third with $6,635.35, including $5,675.14 in council expenses and $960.21 in corporate expenses.
Rounding out the remainder of council, combining both council and corporate expenses, were Gary Harvey ($6,086.17), Natalie Harris ($5,914.70), Keenan Aylwin ($4,583.95), Jim Harris ($4,332.06), Mike McCann ($4,222.05), Robert Thomson ($3,827.30), Clare Riepma ($2,886.90). Shipley is listed as having only expensed $19.45.
When council expenses are tallied, it totals just over $55,000. The mayor says he believes that's good value.
"I think it's worth noting that, with 150,000 residents, the expenses total of $55,000 among 11 members of council are about 35 cents per resident," Lehman said. "That doesn’t even cover the cost of a single newsletter delivered by mail, so I don’t think the expenses are excessive.
"While conferences, etc., sometimes are seen as unnecessary spending, I always think of some of the money-saving initiatives that have come out of things like the (Federation of Canadian Municipalities) conference, such as LED streetlights, that have saved the city millions of dollars," he added. "It takes just a few of those types of savings to return a multiple of what is ever spent on attending conferences."
The statement of remuneration and expenses also includes citizen appointees to boards and council committees, such as the Barrie Police Services Board, the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority, the Lake Simcoe Regional Airport, and committee of adjustment.
The full version of the financial statement can be viewed on the city's website.
