Penticton council approves task force to determine their pay

Task force for council pay

Photo: Contributed

Penticton City Hall will see a new councillor soon.

Penticton city council has approved details about a task force being formed to determine their salaries.

At a January meeting, council had been presented with a staff-tailored plan to up the mayor's salary by four per cent, and the councillors' salaries to be raised to 42 per cent of the mayor's salary. They mayor would have been compensated over $95K under the new model.

The financial impact of the raises on the city's coffers was estimated at around $62K in 2027.

Some on council argued to approve the increase, citing the importance of a diverse slate of candidates able to take on the job as the October 2026 election approaches, while others thought monetary compensation should not be the reason to take the role.

Council voted to establish a third-party committee to help make the decision for them.

That is the Mayor and Council Remuneration Task Force, newly approved as of Tuesday's council meeting.

The task force will be made up of five volunteer voting members selected by staff at the city, all of whom will have experience in "business leadership, remuneration development or other similar experience and skills."

They will meet over a period of one to two months, weekly or bi-weekly, to discuss the matter and send an eventual recommendation.

The positions will be advertised in local media and social media, and successful applicants will be required to sign a confidentiality and conflict of interest declaration.