COUNCILLORS GET $220,000 TO HELP COMMUNICATE

Lorje speaks out against decision

Saskatoon city councillors and the mayor are getting $220,000 in 2013 to help them communicate more effectively with the public.

Half of the money will be earmarked for Mayor Don Atchison, while the other half will be split among the city’s 10 councillors and could, for example, be used to hire a communications firm.

A description in this week’s budget says the money will be used “for services such as assisting in addressing inquiries and complaints by citizens, including composing correspondence and providing requested information or referrals.” The money will also used for “general communications,” “project management” and to “co-ordinate public appearances and speaking engagements.”

The decision to spend the money led to one of the most heated speeches during this week’s budget deliberations, as Coun. Pat Lorje spoke passionately against spending the money.

“Councillors should not be setting their own benefits package,” Lorje said Thursday, reiterating her emotional plea to councillors from the previous day’s budget meeting.

“I felt that having this $110,000 in the budget to unilaterally increase part of the benefits package for councillors was the wrong way of going about it.”

“COUNCILLORS SHOULD NOT BE SETTING THEIR OWN BENEFITS PACKAGE.”

PAT LORJE

Lorje has asked for the creation of an independent body that would review all councillor compensation and benefits — including administrative support. Councillors make $52,991 per year while the mayor makes $117,757 per year, as of April 1.

The total $1.2 million budgeted in 2012 for the mayor and city councillors included their wages, support staff — one working part time on behalf of all city councillors — and operating costs such as travel expenses, car allowances and cellphones and laptops.

There was no money for support staff to help them with inquiries or complaints from citizens.

Atchison said the extra $110,000 will go toward a contract position to help with communications and research. He was criticized last year for not letting the public know in advance — via a public service announcement — about overseas trips. The demands on the mayor’s office have grown in recent years, he said.

The mayor’s office staff don’t have the capacity to organize media events or the annual town hall meetings in each ward, which he wants to see continue, he said.

Atchison said he also wants to make sure his Twitter account wasn’t just used during the election period.

“Once we started I wanted to make sure we continued after the election,” he said.

Councillors do not yet know exactly how they will spend the extra money. They could choose to pool the money together and hire a communications firm or spend the money separately on things like newsletters.

“In order to do the job properly you have to make sure you are communicating with as many people as possible,” said Coun. Darren Hill, who voted in favour of the increase. “That takes resources — both human and financial — and right now we have nothing allocated.”

Hill says he and other councillors regularly communicate with the public by phone, through email or social media, but this extra cash will help them extend their reach. He rejects Lorje’s notion that the expenditures should not be voted on by council, saying city administration made the recommendation, not council.

“This is not about compensation. This is not about getting perks and benefits for us as elected officials. This is about providing the tools to ensure we are doing the best job possible,” Hill said.

City officials say Saskatoon is one of the only large cities in Canada that does not have a dedicated communications budget. The part-time staff member working on behalf of council helps primarily with organizing council packages and meeting material and making travel arrangements.