The Blue Mountains council has deferred a decision on whether or not councillors should be enroled in the Ontario Municipal Employees Retirement System (OMERS) pension plan.
At its committee of the whole meeting on Aug. 14, council considered a staff report outlining options for enrolling members of council in the OMERS pension plan. Currently, members of The Blue Mountains council are not part of the pension plan.
Council has the option to pass a bylaw that would enrol its members in the pension plan. Three options are available: all members of council can be enrolled, only the mayor can be enroled or the status quo can continue.
Enrolment is a one-time decision and cannot be undone once the bylaw is passed. If council were to choose to add councillors to OMERS the decision would not be retroactive to the beginning of the current council term. It would take effect on the date of the bylaw passing.
Across Ontario very few municipalities have enrolled members of council in OMERS. Staff said that just 16 per cent of municipalities had made that move. For municipalities with populations under 10,000 people the number is even lower at seven per cent. In Grey County just Chatsworth, Georgian Bluffs, Owen Sound and Grey County have enrolled councillors in OMERS.
After receiving the report, council voted 4-2 in favour of deferring a decision until later in the year when the full compensation package for councillors will be reviewed. Mayor Andrea Matrosovs and Coun. Shawn McKinlay opposed the motion. Deputy Mayor Peter Bordignon was absent.
Coun. June Porter said with the budget pressures the municipality is facing in 2024, she did not want an immediate decision made.
“I wouldn’t feel comfortable to be in a position to support this right now,” said Porter.
Coun. Paula Hope also favoured deferring the matter, but said members of council should seriously consider the pension plan idea.
“We do want to recruit councillors at all ages and stages of their lives,” said Hope.
