Welland City Council received a report last week outlining exactly how much councillors cost municipal taxpayers in 2024.
The grand total was $591,386.
That total includes salaries, conference expenses, benefits, pension contributions, employer health tax, mileage for meetings, and cell phone and data usage.
Mayor Frank Campion rang up the biggest bill for taxpayers. His salary was $78,077 and the grand total of his compensation was $117,511. Campion also racked up $1,896 in mileage expenses for meetings and had a car allowance of $4,800.
Among councillors, Councillors John Chiocchio and Sharmila Setaram came in first and second place in terms of total taxpayer expenses, with each costing taxpayers just over $44,000.
Chiocchio’s cell phone and data usage was more than double that of the average councillor, at $562. Other than Campion, Chiocchio’s conference bill was the highest on Council, coming in at $7,642.
Setaram’s taxpayer bill was higher than most of her colleagues because she spent nearly $7,000 on conference expenses and also billed taxpayers just under $500 for board member expenses.
Councillor Anthony DiMarco had the highest cell phone and data bill out of everyone on Council, and it wasn’t even close. DiMarco’s cell phone bill was $976, four times as much as the average Council member.
Overall, DiMarco actually cost taxpayers the least out of all Council members in 2024 because his pay was temporarily suspended for part of the year. While the average councillor’s renumeration was $28,028, DiMarco only received $23,498 in salary.
Councillors Claudette Richard, Mary Ann Grimaldi, and Leo Van Vilet did not receive Canada Pension Plan contributions because of their age.
Four members of Council, Councillors Adam Moote, Mary Ann Grimaldi, Anthony DiMarco, and David McLeod, only expensed $368 in conference expenses in 2024, while the rest of Council had conference expenses of between $3,500 and $8,900.
The compensation for both Welland’s mayor and members of council is substantially less than the Ontario average.
The following paragraphs break down expenses by Ward.
Ward 1
Councillor May Ann Grimaldi received a salary of $28,028 and her total compensation of $35,961, while Councillor Adam Moote received a salary of $28,344 and his total compensation of $37,329.
Ward 2
Councillor David McLeod received a salary of $28,028 and his total compensation was $33,157, while Councillor Leo Van Vliet received a salary of $29,136 and his total compensation was $42,735.
Ward 3
Councillor John Chiocchio received a salary of $28,028 and his total compensation was $44,562, while Councillor Sharmila Setaram received a salary of $28,028 and her total compensation was $44,027.
Ward 4
Councillor Bryan Green received a salary of $28,028 and his total compensation was $36,516, while Councillor Tony DiMarco received a salary of $23,498 and his total compensation was $32,438.
Ward 5
Councillor Claudette Richard received a salary of $29,452 and her total compensation was $40,713, while Councillor Graham Speck received a salary of $29,261 and his total compensation was $41,938.
Ward 6
Councillor Bonnie Fokkens received a salary of $30,685 and her total compensation was $43,904, while Councillor Jamie Lee received a salary of $28,028 and his total compensation was $40,594.
Jay Goldberg is the Ontario Director at the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. He previously served as a policy fellow at the Munk School of Public Policy and Global Affairs. Jay holds a Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Toronto.
