Wyndham councillors have claimed just under $77,000 in expenses in the past year, considerably down on previous years.
The 11 councillors spent $30,195 on equipment, including computers, printers and phones, in the year to September 30 as well as $23,833 for broadband and printing costs as part of an overall expenses bill of $76,798.
A further $8709 was spent on conferences and seminars.
In comparison, nine councillors claimed $87,089 between November 2010 and October 2011, the most recent year for which full figures are available.
The council’s expenses and entitlements policy states councillors can be reimbursed for costs incurred as part of their duties. In the year to September 30, mayor Heather Marcus claimed $11,430, Cr Gautam Gupta $9217 and Cr Bob Fairclough $8122. Shane Bourke, who resigned from council on October 1, claimed $3547.
Cr Glenn Goodfellow, whose expenses totalled $7102, said he had made an effort to reduce his claims. “I’m actually looking at conferences and seeing if they are relevant to my portfolio. If not, then I don’t go,’’ he said.
Cr Goodfellow said councillors’ spending could also be lower than in previous years because fewer councillors needed to attend training sessions. “The five of us who were re-elected don’t need to attend as many training events as the other councillors,” he said.
