good job Brad

[oneoff]

QUOTEOneoff you are off on this. First of all I am pretty sure no one charges .75 per km. If they do it is taxable, .55 is the max non taxable rate.

Second, I doubt each councillor is charging 16k per year in most RMs. I just joined council this fall and our guys average $6,500,per diem and mileage combined. Our RM is an amalgamation of three RMs that took place in the 60's.
Unquote

Well LEP I'm going to say it again. One of the RM's I pay into did charge 0.75 per Km at least last year. And I'm here tellig everyone first hand that every councillor without exception again voted for setting the mileage rate into the future...even though they were told that Revenue Canada had instructed administrators to issue taxable T4 slips for mileage claims in excess of 0.55 per click. Now driving a motorbike doesn't get done for nothing so nothing stopping billing every trip to town for the mail at 0.75 c as "supervision" mileage. All that information is first hand direct from councillors at the council table.

I never meant to say that every councilor gets $16,000 per year. I know councils that bill for more invite everyone to familiarize themselves with the total cost of an employee (council member). Typically in business the wage is about half of an employees cost of having around. For the special case of council members it is no different, and in some creative cases probably higher.

That list given in the last post can be just the tip of the ice berg. It can include legal representation, opinions, and the whole list of disability; health; drug and prescription plans eyeglass, dental plans, conventions;(including spouses), travel etc. etc and nothing says it has to go under council remuneration for meetings and mileage/supervision.

I don't tend to exagerate; and just don't outright lie; and I never said or meant that every council behaves in this manner. However it is noted that it is seldom that any council member feels a little envious of what some of their peers are pulling in at the public trough. Some have even suggested that if paid even more...they might do a better job.

In my opinion there are too many public troughs that are being abused and those council members are obtaining those benefits at other peoples expense. There need to be long overdue major overhauls.

[Ache4Acres]

Lol when brad retweeted that quote by twitter handle "Liberals suck dik" with the hashtag #shithead...😃

[sawfly1]

i agree with cutting the health regions, health needs a broader view to function
better overall.
on the RMs , they could be cut back too, the number,
has been a while since i looked at our councillors costs
, last i looked they averaged around 3-7 thousand..
maybe it is more now.
never wanted the job myself, so i have no idea if compensation is fair or not.

for the most part , the RMs seem to run good around here,

seems like the councillors for the most part . bring common sense to the table.

i just wonder if you get too big, you end up with engineers , without common sense.
costing ten times as much

[LEP]

Sawfly I agree that getting too big would result in a hired employee calling the shots that likely don't have an appreciation of what it means to drive daily on gravel roads.

Oneoff like I stated before our RM is the size of three small RMs. So 18 by 48 miles with nine councillors and a reeve. I wouldn't say it couldn't be bigger but I really think if got two or three times bigger you would be losing dollars to trying save pennies.

[bucket]

After being on council it was clear the reason the algamation didn't happen years ago was the existing council couldn't lose their little power trips.....


Had that happened then I think rural Saskatchewan would be in better shape in all areas .... education, health care and recreation facilities....ran by involved people from local communities within a larger county or rm.

And I think the end game of this health region consolidation will follow thru to the RMs very quickly.....Reiter and Marit are both from sarm.. .....

[farmaholic]

Our RM is 18 miles by 24 miles, 6 councilors a reeve and administrator and assistant administrator. If there's not enough councilors and there could be TOO much consensus and that isn't good either. Too big and I do think they can lose sight of some issues. Too much urban influence in a rural municipality and that can be a recipe for a disaster. Too many Squatters have the city mentality.... "why isn't my road cleaned of snow before I have to leave for work?" ...maybe because it isn't a school bus route or main thoroughfare.... it's like emergency room triage.

I think the guys do a fair job of managing the RM overall. There is a road crowning issue in parts of the RM but that isn't something that couldn't be changed. We are lucky enough to have two main pipeline corridors running right through our RM plus a couple of pumping stations and a spattering of oilwells.... sure helps keep Ag land taxes in check.





These pictures were taken within minutes of each other..... the road that has basically no water on it is our private driveway and the other is the municipal road to our driveway (road is only good up to our driveway, beyond that isn't passable in the winter or after big rain events). I would say 90% of the traffic down the municipal road also comes down our driveway! Hence my issue with the crown on the roads.... flat roads don't "shed" water! Which do you think is the better driving experience under these conditions?

[farmaholic]

Farma ! Beautiful pic of your private driveway !

# paradise !

Thanks wiseguy, but nuttin special..... although it was a hell of a pea crop for the slum of the Ghetto!

[Guest]

Our RM is 18 miles by 24 miles, 6 councilors a reeve and administrator and assistant administrator. If there's not enough councilors and there could be TOO much consensus and that isn't good either. Too big and I do think they can lose sight of some issues. Too much urban influence in a rural municipality and that can be a recipe for a disaster. Too many Squatters have the city mentality.... "why isn't my road cleaned of snow before I have to leave for work?" ...maybe because it isn't a school bus route or main thoroughfare.... it's like emergency room triage.

I think the guys do a fair job of managing the RM overall. There is a road crowning issue in parts of the RM but that isn't something that couldn't be changed. We are lucky enough to have two main pipeline corridors running right through our RM plus a couple of pumping stations and a spattering of oilwells.... sure helps keep Ag land taxes in check.

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These pictures were taken within minutes of each other..... the road that has basically no water on it is our private driveway and the other is the municipal road to our driveway (road is only good up to our driveway, beyond that isn't passable in the winter or after big rain events). I would say 90% of the traffic down the municipal road also comes down our driveway! Hence my issue with the crown on the roads.... flat roads don't "shed" water! Which do you think is the better driving experience under these conditions?

Best thing is Get on the council and straighten it out . Thats what i did . Until i got tired of the same people bitching all the time and they were the ones that did sfa

[jamesb]

In our RM (not that far from you oneoff) we normally have a ratepayers supper at some time during the year. Very well attended and enjoyed. Time is always given for questions and concerns. Usually those who have a lot of issues are encouraged to run for council. Some do run but some just like to throw stones. Councillors are not highly paid. I think around $5000, expenses in. We have had a fairly good turn over in councillors so nobody's been there too long.
I do think that RM amalgamation would be a good thing but you cant drive a grader 30 miles to work every day. Better to amalgamate amicably though than the forces process that went on in Manitoba, boy are they fighting over there in some of the new RM's.

[oneoff]

Well from personal experience I can say that last fall resulted in wholesale council turnovers at several adjoining RM's. New reeves and mayors, some incumbants not contesting and actual elections that gave clear overwhelming victories.

All excellent signs of change.

Now the new elected officials need some time to get their feet under themselves...and they are being given some necessary time with the usual big gap between their council meetings and admittedly not much visible interaction (on at least some fronts) with their electorate.

Now those councils have some big overdue issues to tackle on many fronts. Will they be up to it? There haven't been any ratepayers meetings yet...but as said they deserve time to get up to speed.

But if that new blood loses track of the majority that gave them their chance...its evidence that it's the "too small local situations "that needs to be changed and if the issues of importance can't be dealt with...what we need is another vision of better governance that replaces treating problems on an individual basis with setting goals and policies and bylaws which aren't routinely coarsely tuned depending on who you are.