The new council's inaugural meeting is to be held this afternoon, at which Mayor-elect Dave Cull and his councillors will take their seats for the first time and be sworn in.
Once the formalities are over, one of the first orders of business will be to consider a report by Mr Cull recommending changes to the way councillors are paid.
The proposals would result in a "flattening" of the pay structure that would see all councillors receiving a higher basic pay, Mr Cull said in his report.
However, deputy chairmen of council committees would lose their bonus for taking the position, while committee chairmen and the deputy mayor would also receive slightly reduced bonuses, Mr Cull said.
The changes, which would be cost neutral overall, aimed to encourage councillors to contribute to a greater range of committees, working parties and other council activities, while still acknowledging the extra work of committee chairmen.
"I believe that by flattening the remuneration structure, councillors then commit to take on the role of a committee chair or deputy chair for reasons other than remuneration," he said.
During the last term, councillors received $40,592.30 per annum, which increased for those councillors who took on additional responsibilities.
That meant committee deputy chairmen received $42,645.90, while committee chairs received $50,747.98 and the deputy mayor $60,895.65.
Under the proposed structure, all councillors would receive a higher basic pay of $44,215.42, but only committee chairmen ($49,215.42) and the deputy mayor ($60,000) would receive bonuses.
That meant those councillors no longer receiving a bonus for working as a deputy chairman of a committee would still be paid more, with the proposed base rate $1569.52 higher than the old rate for deputy chairmen.
Committee chairmen's bonuses would be $1532.56 less than the old rate, while the deputy mayor - Mr Cull has nominated Cr Chris Staynes - would receive a slightly reduced pay of $60,000, down from the $60,895.65 received by outgoing deputy mayor Syd Brown.
Mr Cull said the bonus adequately reflected the extra responsibilities that came with the role, including deputising in Mr Cull's absence.
Pay rates for community board members ($8166.20), deputy chairmen ($9189.95) and chairmen ($16,332.42) would remain unchanged.
The total remuneration bill - paid to all councillors and community board members - would remain virtually unchanged, with the overall bill of $659,800.46 just 3c less than last year's total.
The recommendations would be discussed by councillors at today's meeting, before being considered by community boards and then sent to the Remuneration Authority for a final determination.
Other changes would see a new $205 meeting fee for non-elected members of two council subcommittees, which each met twice annually, and minor tweaks to rules governing the recovery of expenses.
The structure and makeup of the council's committees was also expected to be confirmed at today's meeting.
DCC PAY RATES:
Existing Proposed
Councillor $40,592.30 → $44,215.42
Committee deputy chairman $42,645.90 → $44,215.42*
Committee chairman $50,747.98 → $49,215.42
Deputy mayor $60,895 → $60,000
*Basic councillor rate; no specific bonus
