KINGSTON, Jamaica – Seeking a pay increase, councillors at the Kingston and St Andrew Municipal Corporation (KSAMC) are scrutinising section 20 of the Local Governance Act that speaks to remuneration for councillors. 

The KSAMC Finance Committee has appointed a seven-man subcommittee to discuss section 20 of the Local Governance Act and on the basis of what is stipulated in the Act, make recommendations to the Ministry of Local Government for councillors’ salaries to be adjusted. 

The members of the subcommittee are the chairman, People’s National Party (PNP) Councillor Venetia Phillips (Papine Division), Councillor Vernon McLeod, Chairman of the Finance Committee, Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) councillor Duane Smith (Chancery Hall division), CEO of the KSAMC Robert Hill, and Kevin Blair, the Chief Financial Officer and the Legal Counsel. 

At the November 4, 2021 meeting of the Finance Committee, Councillor Phillips called attention to section 20 of the ACT in regard to the remuneration of Chairpersons, Deputy Mayor and Councillors. 

Section 20 of the Local Governance Finance and Financial Management Act states: “There shall be paid to each Mayor, Deputy Mayor and Councillors’ salaries at such rate that may be provided for the operation of such a budget if the local authority approves.” 

At the recent Finance Committee meeting, (February 2022) Councillor McLeod said that the subcommittee would have an initial discussion on Section 20 and then take the matter to the Association of Local Government Officers (ALGA). 

He said that the committee would look at the different sections of the Act of relevance to the salaries issue. 

However, Councillor Andrew Swaby, Minority leader, said as a first step, the KSAMC should have discussed the Section 20 pay increase for councillors with ALGA. He also stated that he would not want to see the KSAMC by itself pursue the matter that concerned all the parish councils. 

McLeod said that ALGA should have been aware of Section 20 of the Local Governance Finance and Financial Management Act and what it meant. 

However, Swaby stated: “I am uncomfortable with the approach and that it is not going to ALGA first.” 

At the November 30, Finance Committee meeting the CEO had recommended that the salary increase discussions be held with the Minister of Local Government in collaboration with ALGA which would discuss and coordinate the salary increase for councillors across all the municipalities.