By NanaimoNewsNOW Staff

Legal fees, internet service dominate Nanaimo council expenses

Jun 8, 2017 | 5:54 PM

NANAIMO — Councillors expensed a little more than $20,000 collectively over the first three months of 2017, according to a staff report.

The report showed coun. Bill Bestwick led the pack, claiming $4,001, the majority for legal fees. Bestwick claimed $3,300 for legal fees, including a little more than $2,800 to Nanaimo’s Brian Kirkhope Law Corp. The firm’s website cites expertise in civil litigation, including experience in mediating and arbitrating disputes.

Councillors Jim Kipp and Jerry Hong were second behind Bestwick at $2,800 respectively.

Combined, councillors expensed $6,630 on legal fees between January and the end of March this year.

Council has an expense budget of $105,000 for all of 2017, $11,500 per councillor and $13,000 for the mayor.

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The first quarter numbers are slightly inflated as each member of council claimed their entire year’s worth of internet and telephone expenses at one time, accounting for $6,900.

In the first quarter of last year, council spent $35,100 as a group. Complete financial information for 2016 is expected to be released with the annual Statement of Financial Information report on June 19.

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