Guelph-Eramosa council has decided to raise councillor salaries next January to ensure take-home pay remains unchanged despite the federal government’s proposed removal of a tax-free allowance for elected officials.
In its 2017 budget the federal government announced that in January 2019 the income tax exemption for one-third of an elected official’s salary would no longer exist.
“This federal tax exemption has been in place for over 70 years under the Income Tax Act,” director of finance Linda Cheyne wrote in a report to council.
“AMO (Association of Municipalities of Ontario) is lobbying the federal government to reconsider the elimination of this exemption.”
The exemption is something Guelph-Eramosa elected officials have subscribed to in previous years.
“This is going to hit every municipal council across the country,” said Mayor Chris White in a Feb. 26 interview.
For Guelph-Eramosa that means an increase of $6,320 in additional employer contributions and loss of GST/HST rebates, explained director of finance Linda Cheyne.
The mayor’s yearly salary is currently $16,527. To maintain the net income after the one-third tax-free exemption is removed the mayor will be making $18,247 per year in 2019.
Councillors currently receive a yearly salary of $14,160 each.
Come January 2019, that will jump to $15,197.
The amount elected officials are paid for half- and full-day special meetings is also being bumped up to accommodate the one-third tax exemption.
The current rates are $89 and $136 for half- and full-day meetings respectively. Next January, those rates will increase 11 per cent – to $99.15 for a half day and to $152 for a full day.
Guelph-Eramosa council approved the increases in salary at the Feb. 20 council meeting.
