Regional directors' new pay rates up for final approval

The board has already approved a pay hike for rural members and a decrease for city reps

After approving remuneration changes for members of the Regional District of Fraser-Fort George’s board of directors earlier this year, directors will be asked to enshrine those changes in the district’s bylaws at a Thursday, July 16 meeting. At the board’s Thursday, Feb. 26 meeting, changes were approved to the base pay for rural electoral area directors as well as the extra rates paid to the board’s chair and vice-chair. These changes will go into effect on Sunday, Oct. 18, the day after British Columbians vote in local elections across the province.

That means that among current directors, only those who are re-elected will receive the increase. For rural directors, annual pay will increase from the current $26,100 to 30,100. The vice-chair’s premium will go from an additional $4,000 over the base to $5,100.

The chair’s premium will go from $23,400 to $27,900. However, for directors who already serve on the council for one of the four municipalities inside the regional district — The City of Prince George, the District of Mackenzie, the Village of McBride and the Village of Valemount — base pay will decrease from $16,900 a year to $15,400. These changes would mean a net increase of $36,400 per year in director remuneration per year.

Beyond those major increases, every position will get consumer price index adjustments on January 1 each year. The CPI is a measurement of inflation for the average Canadian household. In 2026, directors got a 2.1 per cent raise from a CPI adjustment.

At the July 16 meeting, directors will be asked to approve amendments to the district’s remuneration bylaw so that the adjustments go into effect as planned. Also up for approval are changes to directors’ expense policies. Currently, directors can claim $15 for breakfast, $20 for lunch and $30 for dinners when required to stay overnight away from home on district business.

District staff propose that should be increased to $20 for breakfast, $25 for lunch and $45 for dinner, with a report noting that current rates are below comparator districts in the province. While no changes are recommended for the amount directors are allowed to claim for reimbursement relating to training and conferences, the language of the policies has been updated for clarity. A bigger change is proposed for covered technology expenses for directors.

At present, directors can apply to get reimbursed for up to $150 each month in office. The proposed changes would see the monthly amount cut down to $100 but provide directors with a one-time opportunity to claim up to $1,700 in expenses towards the purchase of a laptop, tablet, notebook or similar computing device to perform their duties with. This latter reimbursement will not be available to municipal directors whose municipalities already provide a technology allowance or device for the same purpose.

Under the City of Prince George’s Council Remuneration Bylaw, councillors are offered either a computer or an allowance to purchase a computing device for their term and so they wouldn’t be eligible for the Fraser-Fort George allowance. Board meetings are held at the district’s offices at 155 George St. in Prince George in a second-floor boardroom. While the public is allowed to attend in person, those who can’t make it in person can watch a livestream through the district’s YouTube page.

However, videos are not archived for later viewing.