Straight from city council with councillor Steve Morris

The Remuneration Authority in Wellington sets the pay of your mayor at $149,814 and city councillors at $70,949 for what they term a 'near full-time” role.

Committee chairs receive an additional $1400 with an additional $14,189 for the deputy mayor.

The pay for a typical councillor is at the higher end of a governance appointment in New Zealand but so are the hours. The average director of a company receives about $50,000 for preparation and 11 meetings a year.

Councillors generally meet 83 times a year formally, in public to make decisions. However, we meet many more times informally with residents, community organisations, businesses and with each other.

As a ward councillor, my typical working week ranges from between 30-50 hours and includes all of the above plus research, briefings and reading agendas that sometimes exceed 1000 pages.

It's a privilege to be paid to do a role I love, and I acknowledge some current and past colleagues who could have been paid significantly more for doing something else.

But our pay is also a privilege when you consider the average household income of the people we serve in Tauranga is $55,800.

Councillor Gail McIntosh had a lower attendance than her colleagues due to illness last term but she has more than made up for her time away in her contribution at the table and behind the scenes. While it's true that some councillors may do more and others do less you'll be pleased to know I've not yet worked with anyone who isn't passionate or doesn't put the required work in. But as they say, you be the judge.

The 2013-2016 Tauranga City Council

Bold denotes sitting councillor.

* Cr Mitchell resigned following election to Parliament in 2014.