TAMRMS#: B06
10.1
REQUEST FOR DECISION
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C-CC-03 City Council Remuneration and Expense Reimbursement Policy Amendments
Presented by: Marta Caufield, Director, Legal, Legislative & Records Services
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RECOMMENDED MOTION(S)
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1. That the amendments to C-CC-03 City Council Remuneration and Expense Reimbursement Policy, as attached to the agenda report dated September 2, 2025, be approved.
2. That with the exception of section 4, the amendments to C-CC-03 take effect on November 1, 2025, and that section 4 of C-CC-03 take effect on October 21, 2025.
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SUMMARY
Council has previously directed that following the municipal general election in 2025, Councillors will be deemed full-time and no longer eligible for per diem payments. Accordingly, Policy C-CC-03 has been amended by administration to incorporate these upcoming changes. The Policy amendments must be approved prior to the municipal general election in order to ensure they are in place prior to the start of the new Council term.
ALIGNMENT TO COUNCIL DIRECTION OR MANDATORY STATUTORY PROVISION
On June 11, 2024, Council passed the following motion:
AR-24-263
That Administration proceeds with Option 3 in the development of an Operating Business Case to provide members of Council with office space in support of CM-23-17.
On July 4, 2023, Council passed the following motion:
CM-23-30
That recommendation "H" from the Council Renumeration Review Committee Report submitted on March 27, 2023 concerning the following be implemented immediately following the General Municipal Election in 2025:
Recommendation H: Mayor and Councillors should not receive monthly subsidy for cellphone and technology.
On June 6, 2023, Council passed the following motions:
CM-23-18
1. That effective after the next municipal election in 2025, councillors will be deemed full-time and compensated at an annual salary of $86,000.
2. That effective July 1, 2023 and ending on October 31, 2025 the following applies:
- Per-diems are provided for duties as Deputy Mayor.
- Per-diems are provided to members of Council, excluding the Mayor, for attendance at Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), Alberta Municipalities (AM), individual Council member training events, Council-appointed committees, and formal meetings between Council and stakeholder groups to a maximum of $12,000 per year.
- That adjustments to the per-diem amounts are reviewed as part of the work of the Council Remuneration Review Committee.
3. That Administration bring to Council an update to Council Policy C-CC-03 City Council Remuneration and Expense Reimbursement incorporating all approved motions impacting the policy.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
Administration has updated Council Policy C-CC-03 City Council Remuneration and Expense Reimbursement in accordance with previous direction provided by Council. The following is a list and explanation of the changes that are proposed, in order of where they appear in the Policy and associated Procedure:
- The definition of "Home Supplies Budget" has been updated to remove the reimbursement of mobile device fees and internet connection, in alignment with previous Council direction (CM-23-30);
- The definition of "Per Diem" has been deleted to align with the removal of per diem payments to Councillors after October 31, 2025 in alignment with CM-23-18;
- Section 4 has been updated to reflect the new fulltime status of Councillors immediately following the municipal general election in alignment with CM-23-18;
- The following sections of the Policy have been deleted in part or in their entirety to align with the removal of per diems effective after October 31, 2025: 5, 6, 14, 15, 30, and 38;
- Section 26 has been partially deleted to remove the reimbursement of mobile device fees in alignment with CM-23-30;
- Section 45 has been updated to provide that administration will have a corporate credit card to assist with expense claims for Council members;
- The associated Procedure has been updated as follows:
o Portions or entirety of sections 7, 8, 23, and Schedule 4 deleted to reflect the removal of per diem payments;
o Section 35 clarifies that City provided laptops and devices are replaced in accordance with the City's Lifecycle Plan;
o Section 36 has been updated to explain that Councillors each receive a $1000 stipend per Council term to outfit their home office;
o Section 37 has been updated to reflect the removal of reimbursement of mobile devices;
o Schedule 1 has been updated to reflect the current and new remuneration amounts for the Mayor and Councillors, along with the effective dates, and with an explanation that these amounts are update in April annually to align with the non-union City employee cost of living adjustment; and
o Schedule 3 has been updated to reflect no reimbursement of mobile devices and home internet, and to update the expense reimbursement rates for meals and incidentals when travelling on City business.
It is recommended that with the exception of section 4 of the Policy, all of the changes take effect on November 1, 2025, permitting current Councillors to make expense claim reimbursements in accordance with the current Policy until October 31, 2025. The changes proposed under the "Service Standards/Expectations" in section 4 speak to when Councillors will be deemed fulltime. The policy states that Councillors will be deemed fulltime "effective immediately following the results of the municipal general election." It is important that this section be deemed effective the date after the municipal election, in order to permit the remuneration of new Councillors effective on this date - meaning they will be paid for attendance at Council Orientation training, which is mandatory beginning in 2025.
STAKEHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS OR ENGAGEMENT
Not applicable.
IMPACTS OF RECOMMENDATION(S)
Financial:
The increase in Councillor's salaries to reflect the full time status will be reflected in the 2026-2028 proposed budget that will be deliberated by Council in the fall of 2025.
During 2025 budget deliberations, the home office stipend ($1000/Councillor once per Council term) was added to the base budget and was identified in the functional summary as noted below:
$6 thousand increase in Materials, Goods, Supplies & Utilities is due to a one-time home office stipend provided to Councillors for each term.
Compliance & Legal:
The updates to C-CC-03 are required in order to align the Policy with previous direction provided by Council. If the updates are not approved, there will be misalignment between Council direction and Council Policy.
Program or Service:
None at this time.
Organizational:
None at this time.
Risks
None at this time.
ALIGNMENT TO PRIORITIES IN COUNCIL'S STRATEGIC PLAN
Initiative aligned with Strategic Plan:
Not Applicable
ALIGNMENT TO LEVELS OF SERVICE DELIVERY
N/A
IMPACTS OF ALTERNATIVES CONSIDERED
If Council does not wish to support the recommendation, the following alternatives could be considered:
ALTERNATIVE 1: Council could direct administration to make additional changes to C-CC-03.
Financial:
None at this time - dependent on nature of changes proposed.
Compliance & Legal:
None at this time - dependent on nature of changes proposed.
Program or Service:
None at this time - dependent on nature of changes proposed.
Organizational:
None at this time - dependent on nature of changes proposed.
Risks
None at this time - dependent on nature of changes proposed.
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Report Date: September 2, 2025
Author(s): Marta Caufield, Ryan Stovall, Anne Victoor
Department: Legal, Legislative & Records' Finance & Strategic Services; Human Resources & Safety
Department Director: Marta Caufield, Anne Victoor, Ryan Stovall
Managing Director: Diane McMordie
Chief Administrative Officer: Bill Fletcher