A peek inside expenses
Interpretation of regional expense policy varies from councillor to councillor
Niagara regional councillors have racked up hefty mobile device bills, purchased event tickets, and even made charitable donations on the public dime.
Documents obtained by the Standard through Freedom of Information requests and interviews with councillors also reveal politicians have used their regional devices while overseas, paid for meals worth hundreds of dollars at a time and streamed Netflix movies on their government devices.
Councillors say some of those expenses were errors by wireless service providers, the result of having their cell phones stolen, not knowing how their devices worked, or because they thought they were conforming to regional policy, although the interpretation of that policy varies from councillor to councillor.
The documents also show councillors routinely bill the public for mileage to attend charity events and community functions, including Christmas lunches and the Niagara Entrepreneur of the Year Awards.
The 633 pages of expense reports and related documents were first processed by the regional freedom of information office for St. Catharines regional councillor Brian Heit, who mentioned them briefly during last week’s council meeting.
They do not represent the full continuity of expenses of councillors from the start of this term to present. Rather, Heit requested a selection of expenses from various points in time for a handful of councillors. The documents show some expenses from Grimsby Coun. Tony Quirk, Port Colborne Coun. David Barrick, Fort Erie Coun. Sandy Annunziata, Pelham Mayor Dave Augustyn, West Lincoln Mayor Doug Joyner, St. Catharines councillors Bruce Timms and Andy Petrowski, Niagara Falls Coun. Selina Volpatti and Reg. Chair Alan Caslin.
As part of an ongoing examination of councillor expenses, The Standard has made requests for all expenses for all councillors, which regional staff say they are working on.
On Twitter, The Standard has invited all councillors to release their full expenses to reporters. So far Grimsby Coun. Quirk and Pelham Mayor Augustyn have sent in their expenses. St. Catharines Mayor Walter Sendzik said he will also release his regional expenses as did St. Catharines Reg. Coun. Debbie McGregor.
Regional council passed a motion last week that could see all councillor expenses posted online, although when that may happen is not clear.
The documents Heit requested show that: • Regional chair Alan Caslin
frequently bills the public for expensive meals. The records Heit requested lack receipts or a detailed explanation of who he has met with, where and what was ordered. Meals are listed in generic terms such as “meeting with constituent” ($222.26 in May 2017), “2016 expense meeting” ($102.14 in Jan. 2017) or simply “meeting.” ($94.22 in Jan. 2017). Caslin issued an emailed statement to the Standard saying as chair he attends more meetings than other councillors. However, did not answer questions about his meal expenses. •Niagara Falls Councillor
Selina Volpatti donated $200 to the YWCA in Niagara Falls
in 2015 and expensed the donation to taxpayers. In an interview with the Standard, Volpatti said she thought she was following the regional expense policy that grants councillors $1,000 in miscellaneous expenses.
“I did that because I thought that was the policy, and I thought it was a good policy that the Region had,” she said.
The policy, which dates back to 2001, grants councillors $1,000 for the “celebration of public events,” “fundraising events of a public nature,” “community dinners”, and “tournaments with proceeds going to charity.” •Fort Erie councillor Sandy
Annunziata racked up cell phone bills of $1,404 while in Cuba in May 2016 and $1,434 while in Italy in Nov. 2016. The Cuba bill was the result of roaming charges while the Italy expenses resulted in going over his travel data plan. In an emailed statement to The Standard, Annunziata said the charges were errors, and the service provider has compensated the region. There is no notation to that effect in the records Heit requested. •Annunziata’s expenses also
include $1,800 for tables to the 2015 Pearl Gloves charity boxing event. The documents show Annunizata paid the Region $1,800 for the tables. In his statement, the councillor said the tables were reserved by the Region using a regional credit card. “All attendees paid for their own seats,” he wrote, saying the tables should not appear on his expenses. •Port Colborne Coun. Barrick incurred $1,638, including $1,604 in roaming charges on his iPad. A note attached to his expenses from regional staff indicate the charges were an error and the service provider has compensated the region.
“That was an error by Rogers that was rectified the following month in October. Why don’t
you ask Rogers what happened,” Barrick said when asked how the erroneous charges arose. “IT confirmed it with Rogers. I ask again, what are you insinuating? The Region didn’t get billed. It was
an error, and it was corrected.” •Welland councillor Paul
Grenier has two large phone bills in Jan and July 2016 worth $765 and $814 respectively. He says they were the result of his phone being stolen twice that year.
“Those charges were to replace my phone, and they charged my account,” he said. “I can’t believe we don’t have some kind of insurance on our phones. With 2,200 regional employees, we must lose some phones every year.” •Pelham Mayor Augustyn generated a $2,032 wireless bill from using his iPad while at a 2016 conference in Detroit on behalf of the Region. He said there is a second large bill resulting from his attendance at a conference in Milwaukee, WI this year.
“We don’t expense our iPad or cell phone bills, and we don’t usually see them. I didn’t even know about the charges,” said Augustyn.
Controlling councillor mobile device expenses is not as easy as just placing boundaries on their use. Augustyn, Quirk and Annunziata all noted mobile devices will often switch over to U.S. providers when near the border, which can result in roaming charges billed to the Region.
“I have also asked the Region to hold Rogers to account when it comes to any roaming charges being billed because of my proximity to the US Border,” said Annunziata. “It is a daily occurrence to have my phone switch to AT&T from Rogers anytime along the Niagara Parkway.” Augustyn and Quirk said councillors were not given much guidance when it came to the operation of mobile devices and that it was only in 2017 that councillors were told they could get travel plans for their devices when they travel.
“Absolutely, I think that needs to be addressed,” said Augustyn when asked if he believes there needs to be a better policy governing councillors devices.
Quirk said some of his colleagues have run into trouble with their devices because they don’t
know how to use them. Some do not know how to turn their roaming functions off. Others don’t
know how to connect to wifi.
“I know how to use my devices. I actually turn my roaming function to ‘off’ so I don’t accidentally incur charges. You can be in Niagara Falls and the device
will switch over to the (United States), and you start getting billed for international roaming,” he said. “Not all my councillors are as technically literate as I am.”
He said one female councillor, who he would not name, ran up her iPad bill by hundreds of dollars because she was streaming
Netflix movies on regional device not realizing she would be billed for the data.
When asked why a councillor would be using a government device to watch Netflix, which isn’t council business, Quirk
said councillors have been given a wide berth when deciding how to use their phones and iPads and what apps they can install and use.
Last week, the clerk sent an email to councillors say the roaming function on their devices would be limited to prevent unnecessary expenses. A few hours later, Caslin sent an email saying the devices would not be limited and any decision to do so would be made by council.
The documents that show most of the councillors expense mileage for going to regional headquarters for meetings, and they often expense tickets for local events, charities and dinners. The prices range from $20 to $75.
“As councillors, we get invited to a variety of events throughout the year. Often we attend various events out of our own pocket. In some cases, where appropriate, it’s expensed through councillor’s expenses. There is probably
a 45-year history of that at the Region,” Barrick said.
The Standard asked Caslin several questions about his expenses and those of other councillors, including whether he believes councillors should be able to expense charitable donations in their name, use their devices while on vacation overseas or billing taxpayers to appear on radio programs.
Caslin did not answer most of The Standard’s questions.
In an emailed statement, Caslin indicated his records omit names, places and other details because “to foster an open door policy with staff, constituents, and business owners, confidentiality may be requested or required.”
Caslin also said he was pleased that council passed an interim expense policy last week, which is now going to a committee for review.
“In the past, and under the new policy, Councillors are accountable to their constituents for the expenses that they submit for reimbursement.”