Brampton Mayor Susan Fennell will receive rich compensation package
Ousted Brampton Mayor Susan Fennell will leave office with about $375,000 in retirement and pension benefits.

thestar.com
Nov. 11, 2014
By Patty Winsa

Susan Fennell, the highest paid mayor in Canada in 2012, will leave her Brampton office with about $375,000 in retirement and pension benefits.

The mayor, trounced in October’s municipal election by former Brampton MPP Linda Jeffrey after an expense scandal, will receive $297,232.26 in a retirement allowance from the city after serving for 26 years, according to Brampton city staff.

Fennell will receive another $23,922.36 in pension benefits, which are paid out by the city to councillors in lieu of a pension, and at least $50,000 more in retirement benefits for her work on the Regional Municipality of Peel Council.

“What the outgoing mayor and councillors will be getting is best described as a self-made golden parachute,” said Jeffrey late Tuesday night. “I’ve been clear when I met with my transition team that we must consider how we can ensure the interests of taxpayers are protected, and I will certainly be exploring all options available.”

The generous payout, part of a $1-million package in compensation to the mayor and six outgoing councillors who leave office Nov. 30, is due to a controversial increase in severance voted in by Brampton council in 2013.

Councillors voted to increase severance from one month of salary for each year on council up to a maximum of 12 months, to a maximum of 18 months.

The move was recommended by a compensation committee that was chaired by Rob Filkin, a Brampton resident who also sat on the board of Fennell’s controversial private gala, called the Mayor Susan Fennell Gala until her resignation as chair in 2010 after criticism over the fund’s lack of transparency.

“She’s getting a pretty good bundle,” said Brampton councillor John Sprovieri, who is being sued by Fennell for libel for remarks made to the Star about the expense scandal.

Jeffrey told a Brampton civic action group that one of her first motions would be to lower the mayor’s combined salary to $168,851 annually, which is equal to what an Ontario provincial cabinet minister earns. Jeffrey also said she would consult with the City’s legal counsel to determine if the 2013 severance package can be rolled back.

Brampton is holding a special council meeting Wednesday to address a forensic audit by Deloitte Canada that found Fennell and her staff violated city spending rules 266 times totalling $172,608 over seven years. An Integrity Commissioner’s report that found she “knowingly” violated the city’s code of conduct will also be addressed at the meeting.

Deloitte recommended Fennell repay $34,118.

In a statement Friday, Fennell said she had been exonerated of the findings by Deloitte after an audit appeal arbitrator ruled just before the election that the repayment amount for the mayor would be reduced to $3,523.

Fennell announced last week that she will be unable to attend the meeting because she had to undergo emergency spinal surgery.

Four councillors have stated they will be asking for the maximum penalty for Fennell, a loss of 90 days pay for the code violation.

They have also said they will bring a motion forward for Fennell to repay $156,000 for expenses that the auditor was not given enough information on to determine if rules had been broken.

Last week, Fennell issued a notice of libel to councillors John Sanderson and Sprovieri for remarks they made to the Star about the expense scandal that Fennell claims were defamatory.

The Star was also served with the notice of libel, the second of two threatened lawsuits against the newspaper.

The Star stands by its reporting.

Fennell was Canada's highest-paid mayor in 2012, including her city of Brampton and Region of Peel salaries.

Fennell did not reply to an emailed request for comment on Tuesday night.