Regional councillors will get to see the impact of raises and a slight spike in conference costs as an overview of their remuneration and expenses makes its way to the horseshoe next week.
The annual report, which details all expenses of the 16-member council, is a requirement of the Municipal Act and summarizes the cost of council, conferences and boards managed by the region.
Last year council cost regional taxpayers $1.17 million in salaries and taxable benefits alone. The same costs for the previous year totalled about $1.16 million.
Each councillor got an inflationary raise last year with remuneration rising from $47,872 to $49,282.
Chair Karen Redman's annual remuneration rose from $169,382 to $180,301. That's not including the $15,710 she was paid for her role as chair of the Waterloo Regional Police Service Board.
Her taxable benefits were $35,384, mileage was $16,443, meetings and event attendance totalled $4,005, telecom expenses were $503 and attendance at conferences in Toronto, Calgary in Ottawa cost $11,171.
Mayors in each of the region's seven municipalities are members of regional council and they are paid councillor salaries on top of their municipal mayor salaries.
For Cambridge Mayor Jan Liggett, whose City of Cambridge salary was $118,039, last year, it means her overall remuneration from both municipalities was $167,321 in 2024, not including benefits.
Cambridge regional councillors Doug Craig and Pam Wolf each get paid the base councillor salary plus remuneration for their roles on various boards.
Craig added $12,871 to his remuneration for his participation on the police board and $1,684 for his role on the 26-member board at the Grand River Conservation Authority. His payout totalled $76,390, including benefits, meeting costs and telecom charges.
Wolf is also a member of the GRCA board of directors.
Last year, her costs, including remuneration, benefits, meetings, mileage and telecom charges totalled $64,733.
Councillors who sit on the GRCA board take home additional pay that ranges from about $1,600 to the $5,480 paid to North Dumfries Mayor Sue Foxton, who was a vice chair of the board last year.
Committee chairs at the region are paid more for their work, so councillors Jim Erb, Michael Harris and Colleen James each receive a higher salary of $56,679.
Conference expenses for all councillors who participated last year totalled $42,939. That compared to $30,983 in conference costs the previous year.
Attendance is measured against 90 meetings, including council meetings, closed meetings, committee meetings and budget meetings.
Regional Chair Karen Redman recorded full attendance at all 90 meetings while Kitchener Mayor Berry Vrbanovic recorded the lowest attendance at 64 meetings.
Most of the rest of council saw their attendance range between 82 and 89 meetings.
Liggett tied with former regional councillor Rob Deutschmann for attendance at 74 meetings.
The police board includes three provincial appointees and one council appointee, each with remuneration set at $12,871 and benefits of $809.
The region says all remuneration and expenses for council and its appointees were included in the approved regional budget for 2024 and established through bylaws.