Local Catholic board responds to report
May 13, 2008 - 09:38 AM
By Crystal Crimi
DURHAM -- Durham's Catholic school board budgets about $75,000 less on each of its trustees than its Toronto counterpart.
In response to a report slamming the Toronto Catholic board for its expense policies and practises, Ryan Putnam, the Durham Catholic District School Board's superintendent of business, said it budgets about $200,000 for trustee honoraria and related expenses.
"Which for us, translates into $25,000 per trustee," said Mr. Putnam.
"The actual amount will show lower," he added. "They don't exhaust the budget amount."
His comments referenced the report 'Enhancing Public Trust and Confidence', by Norbert Hartmann, prepared for the minister of education and released May 6. It reviewed trustee expenses at the Toronto Catholic board from 2003 to present, following a request for assistance by the board's current chairman. The governance cost at the Toronto Catholic District School Board is among the highest in the province, according to the review, with a budget of about $107,218 per trustee, equalling almost $15 per student. Other boards referred to in the report were from as low as $3.62 for the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board to $8.99 for the York Catholic board. Funds available to support trustees include honoraria and trustee services and expenditures.
The Durham Catholic board's budgeted amount works out to about $8 per pupil per trustee, said Mr. Putnam, and added the number of trustees per student is not as proportionate.
"The budgeted expenditure of $25,000 per trustee is below the average of the other boards," said Mr. Putnam, referring to the nine selected boards featured in the report. "We're at the lower of the range and below the average."
The Durham District School Board budgeted $63,440 for all its trustee expenses, including their $1,000 annual discretionary fund. All expense claims are also reviewed and approved by the board's chairwoman.
Mr. Hartmann's report says Toronto Catholic trustees provided themselves benefits and services not permitted by the education act.
The expense categories allowed under the board's policies over the four years included paid advertisements, promotional material, hospitality - meals and school plus ward meetings, donations, gifts and events; travel - kilometres, taxis, transit, air and rail reimbursements; office expenses: one-time and recurring; and, miscellaneous expenses for all other items.
Mr. Hartmann's report includes recommendations for policy changes at the local and provincial level in response to concerns over its findings.
Mr. Putnam said the Durham Catholic board will continue to be compliant to any directives the Province provides regarding expenditure policies.
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