The Lithuanian parliament has drafted amendments on paying salaries to local government politicians instead of the existing payments to cover their office expenses, the use of which has recently sparked a scandal in the country.
Under the proposed amendments, council members, who currently do not receive a salary but can claim reimbursements for work-related expenses, would be paid one fifth of the mayor's salary.
“This regulation would remove the existing compensation that has caused a lot of questions, and the new salary would include the payment for office needs and also the pay councillors have received so far for the time spent in meetings,” Audrius Petrošius, a member of the ruling conservative Homeland Union–Lithuanian Christian Democrats, (TS-LKD) said when presenting the bill on Thursday.
Ninety-five MPs gave their initial backing to the proposed amendments, there were no votes against and seven lawmakers abstained. The bill will now go to the parliamentary Committee on State Administration and Local Authorities for further consideration.
Mayors’ salaries depend on the size of their municipality. Mayors receive an average pre-tax pay of around 4,000 euros, so the salary of a municipal councilor would be around 800 euros before tax.
The debate on councillors’ use of public money allocated for office expenses has recently sparked a scandal in Lithuania after it turned out that some local politicians had claimed the maximum possible amounts without providing credible evidence they actually incurred the declared expenses.
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