Council agrees on new remuneration deal

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — After discussions that began last month at a Dec. 14 council meeting, a new deal has been agreed on for remuneration services from Dugal Smith and Associates.

The original quoted price was $20,000 plus expenses, which quite a few councillors felt was too high a price for the task at hand.

City staff worked to lower the price by $6,000 by changing the work involved and providing data so that Dugal Smith and Associates wouldn’t have to spend extra time digging it up if not warranted. This brought the total asking price to $14,000 plus expenses.

Fort St. John’s current remuneration policy doesn’t expire until 2017. Early that year, City Council will establish another citizen review committee — to determine if the remuneration remains within the range of comparable communities.

Under the current policy, the Mayor’s remuneration is $62,132, and for councillors its $23,300 — both from December 2014 to November 2017. The acting Mayor’s remuneration for Councillors is $500 per month.