«Even today I am walking around the country in boots. Here we are still in bad shape.” It’s been two weeks since a water bomb hit Fondra Islandcausing a landslide that interrupted the provincial road in the locality Trabuchello. But the mayor Claudio Forchini is still engaged in inspections necessary to restore the safety conditions of the provincial road, in order to be able to reopen it to traffic as soon as possible.
A full-time job for first citizens (Click here for the Special Municipal Elections), especially in smaller municipalities where administrative tasks overlap one another. But also a service that has lost appeal, in the face of an often wide gap between responsibility and remuneration. Or better: function allowanceThat the 2022 budget law of the Draghi government has increased. A progressive adjustment (until it becomes fully operational in 2024) of auditors’ compensation, to be parameterized to the compensation of the President of the Region (13,800 euros gross per month) and on the basis of percentages that take into account the residents of the administered municipalities.
Looking at the city of Bergamothe newly elected mayor Elena Carnevali is among the first citizens at the helm of provincial capitals with more than 100 thousand inhabitants for whom the allowance went from 5,205.89 euros gross per month three years ago to the current 11,040 euros (still gross). But the adjustments also concern compensation deputy mayors, councillors And advisors of the Bergamo Municipalities. In the capital the salaries of deputy mayors and councilors went from 3,904.42 to 8,280 euros gross and from 3,383.83 to 7,176 euros gross respectively. Greater costs covered thanks to state funding: in detail 100 million euros for 2022, to which were added 150 million euros for the following year and, finally, 220 million euros starting from this year: «We have followed the progressive increase foreseen by the terms set by law, without burdening the municipal coffers”, he explains Sergio Gandi, re-elected and reconfirmed as deputy mayor, who maintained his responsibility for the budget as in his two previous administrative mandates. If it had been decided to increase the compensation in a single round, anticipating the time required by law, “the difference would have been covered with municipal resources”, adds Gandi.
In Treviglio, the only municipality in Bergamo with over 30 thousand inhabitantsthe mayor’s allowance has passed from 3,114.23 to 4,830 euros gross. The lower “band” is that of 10 to 30 thousand inhabitants and includes municipalities such as Serious And Dalmine. In the first case he was elected mayor Gabriele Cortesiof Fratelli d’Italia, and in the second the Northern League member was reconfirmed Francesco Bramani. In this range of municipalities the allowance of first citizens rises from 2,788.87 to 4,140 euros.
However, most of the municipalities in Bergamo are smaller in size in terms of resident population. From 5 to 10 thousand inhabitants the allowances of the first citizens go from 2,509.98 to 4,002 euros. In towns with 3 to 5 thousand inhabitants, allowances have been increased from 1,952.21 to 3,036 euros gross, while in centers with less than 3 thousand inhabitants the compensation was adjusted from 1,659.38 to 2,208 euros gross. And it is in this last category that, for example, Fondra Island falls: «Although, being retired, I have chosen to continue to receive 800 euros a month – explains Forchini -. I didn’t choose to be mayor for economic reasons”.
However, the value of the function allowance is halved when a mayor continues to work as an employee. As in the case of Alessandro Collettare-elected mayor of another municipality that is small in terms of inhabitants but “large” in terms of economic players present in the area: that is Orio al Serio. «A mayor should be able to dedicate himself only to his job as an administrator – reflects Colletta -. But it’s not always possible. This is a service that is done above all out of passion.”
