A report commissioned by Hamilton Mayor Graeme Outerbridge and his City Hall team has recommended they each be paid a five-figure annual salary for the “tremendous sacrifices” they are making while in office.Elected official Mr Outerbridge should get $75,000 a year, according to the confidential document, while $42,000 should be paid to aldermen Donal Smith, Carlton Simmons and Gywneth Rawlins and $30,000 to councillors Larry Scott, Keith Davis, George Scott, Troy Symonds and RoseAnn Edwards.The Royal Gazette has obtained a copy of the 16-page report, authored by consultant Professor Calvin Okang Shabazz.He writes: “There is no doubt that there are tremendous responsibilities attached to the offices of Mayor, Alderman and Common Councillor.“They all have a fiduciary responsibility under the laws of Bermuda, as well as a corporate responsibility to oversee and manage the affairs of the City of Hamilton in a lawful and acceptable manner.“The fiduciary responsibility is enormous, inasmuch as they are entrusted with mega-assets that belong to the people of this Country, and they have legal authority to make decisions, presumably in the best interest of the people, who entrust them with such valuable assets and resources thereupon.”Professor Shabazz adds: “We conclude without a shadow of doubt that the Mayor and his council are deserving of remuneration for not only what expected of them (sic), but for the tremendous sacrifices they make in their undertakings.”The report cites www.payscale.com and www.simplyhired.com as sources for “multi-jurisdictional data” on salaries for mayors and council members.Professor Shabazz notes that Hamilton is “one of the smallest” cities in the world and that “mayors in small cities [in the US] earn between $10,000 and $13,000, respectively”.But, after comparing the roles of Corporation members with elected members of Parliament and noting the “above average” pay scales in Bermuda, he goes on to recommend $75,000 for the Mayor, $42,000 for aldermen and $30,000 for councillors.Mr Outerbridge was off island yesterday but Deputy Mayor Mr Smith said, in an e-mailed response from a City Hall spokeswoman to questions about the report: “Previous City of Hamilton boards have looked at the issue of compensation for council members. The immediate past board sought a legal opinion on this matter.“The current board commissioned a professional preliminary review on compensation. The council has received the report from Professor Shabazz. At this time, no decisions have been made on the recommendations in the report.”Further questions about how much the report cost Hamilton taxpayers and when a decision was likely to be made on the recommendations were not answered.A spokeswoman for Home Affairs Minister Michael Fahy, who has responsibility for the municipalities, told this newspaper the Mayor informed the Minister at a recent meeting that the report had been commissioned.“The report is understood to be for the consideration of the Mayor and his team and has not been shared with the Minister,” she said.The spokeswoman said the Minister had “no view” on the report’s recommendations due to “insufficient information”.Former Mayor Charles Gosling said last night he believed salaries for elected members were a bad idea but there should be payment for attending meetings.His administration sought a legal opinion and was told the Municipalities Act would need to be amended to allow members to be paid.The Ministry of Home Affairs spokeswoman said a proposal to amend the legislation “has not been considered”.Useful website: www.cityhall.bm