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How much should Metro Vancouver mayors make?
Questions are being raised after one mayor is set to make almost $400,000 this year

Should a mayor of one of the municipalities in Metro Vancouver make more than the mayor of New York, the Premier of BC and the Mayor of Toronto? Well, that’s what’s happening, and it’s causing a fair amount of backlash.
Background: There’s been a lot of debate, led by reporters, FOI requests and even local politicians, illustrating how the larger Metro Vancouver Regional District has spent some of its money in questionable ways. But now, that attention has moved over to the mayors within the region and how much they make.
The numbers: Burnaby Mayor Mike Hurley, who oversees a city population of 249,000 according to the 2021 census, makes $393,075 a year, according to Global. Now, to clear, this isn’t his salary in Burnaby, but includes various extra compensation, including $195,393 as mayor (slightly below Toronto’s mayor at $225,304), $109,000 as Metro Vancouver chair, $32,160 for working on the TransLink Mayors’ Council and $42,000 for being on TransLink’s Board of Directors.
Yes, but: Now let’s be fair, these other jobs are additional responsibilities above and beyond being mayor. If someone is working extra, they deserve to be compensated. The question is, how much is fair? And should politicians like this be making almost half a million dollars working as an elected official?
A call from inside the house: It’s not just reporting digging into money and local governance. New Westminster city councillor Daniel Fontaine has been beating this drum and is calling on the information to be more accessible fo the public.
Richmond Coun. Kash Heed called it “ridiculous” after learning that Richmond Mayor Malcolm Brodie was paid $362,000 in compensation.
In Vancouver: While total compensation wasn’t clear, Sim will be making $210,444 this year only as mayor, up from $205,914, after a 2.2 pay raise this year. Pay increased 7.3 percent in 2023, 3.8 percent in 2022 and 0.3 percent in 2021.