Guide to Councils

Councillor allowances

Mayors and councillors are entitled to receive an allowance while performing their duty as an elected official. The Victorian Government sets the upper and lower levels for allowances paid to councillors. The exception to this is the Melbourne City Council and Greater Geelong City Council whose allowances are separately fixed.

Councils are required to review allowance levels by 30 June in the year following a general election and the allowance level determined remains in effect for the full term of the council.

Allowances levels are subject to annual automatic adjustments that are announced in the Victoria Government Gazette by the Minister for Local Government. A Council can only undertake a further review of its allowance level during its term if:

• the limits set by the Government for any of the categories are changed;
• a council's category status was changed after an annual assessment found extraordinary movements in its population and revenue figures; or
• a council makes a successful submission to a Local Government Panel to have its category changed on the basis of an exceptional circumstances case.

Councillor allowance categories

Councils are divided into three categories based on the income and population of each Council. 

Category 1	Category 2	Category 3
Current Range: Councillors $8,833-$21,049 Mayor up to $62,884	Current Range: Councillors $10,914-$26,245 Mayor up to $81,204	Current Range: Councillors $13,123-$31,444 Mayor up to $100,434
Alpine Shire Council Ararat Rural City Council Benalla Rural City Council Borough of Queenscliffe Buloke Shire Council Central Goldfields Shire Council Corangamite Shire Council Gannawarra Shire Council Hepburn Shire Council Hindmarsh Shire Council Indigo Shire Council Loddon Shire Council Mansfield Shire Council Mount Alexander Shire Council Murrindindi Shire Council Northern Grampians Shire Council Pyrenees Shire Council Southern Grampians Shire Council Strathbogie Shire Council Towong Shire Council West Wimmera Shire Council Yarriambiack Shire Council	Bass Coast Shire Council Baw Baw Shire Council Bayside City Council Campaspe Shire Council Colac Otway Shire Council East Gippsland Shire Council Glenelg Shire Council Golden Plains Shire Council Greater Shepparton City Council Hobsons Bay City Council Horsham Rural City Council  Latrobe City Council Macedon Ranges Shire Council Maribyrnong City Council Maroondah City Council Mildura Rural City Council Mitchell Shire Council Moira Shire Council Moorabool Shire Council Moyne Shire Council Nillumbik Shire Council South Gippsland Shire Council Surf Coast Shire Council Swan Hill Rural City Council Wangaratta Rural City Council Warrnambool City Council Wellington Shire Council Wodonga City Council Yarra City Council	Ballarat City Council Banyule City Council Boroondara City Council Brimbank City Council Cardinia Shire Council Casey City Council Darebin City Council Glen Eira City Council Frankston City Council Greater Bendigo City Council Greater Dandenong City Council Hume City Council Kingston City Council Knox City Council Manningham City Council Melton Shire Council Monash City Council Moreland City Council Moonee Valley City Council Mornington Peninsula Shire Council Port Phillip City Council Stonnington City Council Whitehorse City Council Whittlesea City Council Wyndham City Council Yarra Ranges Shire Council

City of Melbourne and Greater Geelong City Council

The allowances of Melbourne City Council and Greater Geelong City Council are fixed by Order in Council and are annually adjusted in the same way as other councils. Current annual allowances are:

	Melbourne City Council	Greater Geelong City Council
Lord Mayor/Mayor Deputy Lord Mayor/Mayor Councillors	$200,870 $100,434 $47,165	$100,434 $31,444 Applicable range for Category 3 Councils

Superannuation Guarantee

Mayoral and councillor allowances are also subject to the addition of the equivalent of the superannuation guarantee (9.5%). Note that this percentage is scheduled to increase to 10.0% from 1 July 2021.

Remote Area Travel

Mayors and councillors are further entitled to receive a 'remote area travel allowance' of $40 per day, up to a maximum $5,000 per annum. This applies where a mayor or councillor travels more than 50 kilometers from home for official duties. 

Expenses

Councillors are entitled to be reimbursed for any necessary out-of-pocket expenses they incur while performing their duties as a councillor. Councils are also required to adopt and maintain a policy in relation to the reimbursement of councillor expenses.

Councils are also required to publish in their annual report the details of the expenses paid to councillors.

Future Changes To Allowances

The Local Government Act 2020 provides that the responsibility for determining mayoral, deputy mayoral and councillor allowances will transfer to the Victorian Independent Remuneration Tribunal.

The Tribunal, which is also responsible for setting remuneration for Members of Parliament and executives in the Victorian public sector, will be required to make its first determination on allowances within six months of being requested by the Minister for Local Government.

Further details on the Tribunal's responsibilities in determining allowances can be found on the Tribunal's website.