Councillor costs

More than $358,000 was spent on Baw Baw Shire councillor allowances and expenses last year.

The annual report presented to council details the annual expenses for each councillor for the last financial year.

As well as their annual allowances as set by the state government, councillors are entitled to claim expenses for travel, car mileage, childcare, technology and conferences and training.

The total for 2019/20 was $358,152, slightly lower than the previous year which was $367,466.

The decrease was largely due to lower IT expenses for all councillors, which were $588 instead of $1080 for each councillor. Cr Michael Leaney was the only exception, with his IT expenses totalling $713 compared to $3192 the previous year.

As a Walhalla resident, Cr Leaney claimed the most in car mileage being $15,687, just $424 more than last year.

The cost of conferences and training was significantly lower this year, with the largest cost being $682 for Cr Tricia Jones. No councillors claimed child care expenses.

Cr Leaney was the only councillor who recorded a 100 per cent attendance rate, attending all 23 council meetings for the 12 month period. The remaining councillors missed only one or two meetings for the year, except Cr Jessica O’Donnell who missed four meetings.

During the 23 council meetings, 129 questions on notice from community members were answered and 178 community submissions were heard by councillors.