The regional district directors are considering granting themselves a raise.
At the Jan. 30 Regional District of Kootenay Boundary (RDKB) board meeting in Grand Forks, a motion to approve an increase to the director’s monthly stipend by $200 per month, plus $200 per month for a technology allowance (which would combine the present $75 cell phone allowance and $175 technology allowance) and establish a car allowance of $50 per month.
The amount would represent a 36-per-cent increase.
The presentation on the raise was done by Trail director Robert Cacchioni to the policy, executive and personnel (PEP) committee, said Grace McGregor, RDKB board chair.
“It showed the widening gap between what municipal directors get paid and what electoral area directors get paid,” she said.
Electoral area directors represent rural areas A, B, C, D and E in the Kootenay-Boundary, while the remaining directors, the municipal directors, represent larger areas such as towns and cities. McGregor said the motion was deferred to allow PEP to look at the issue more in depth with the information Cacchioni provided.
McGregor said the different directors play different roles with the RDKB board providing the only local government for the electoral areas.
“We make different decisions,” she said. “That is our main government whereas municipal directors, their main government is their council. So they sit at that table because they share some services as a regional district.”
Grand Forks Mayor Brian Taylor, who sits as the chair of the PEP committee, said it would be an interesting challenge for the committee to have to go over the remuneration issue once again.
“There needs to be more discussion, that’s why it’s back at PEP,” he said.