Directors of the Isla Vista Community Service District will now be compensated for time spent serving on the board, as discussed at the board’s Oct. 30 meeting.

The seven-member board of directors can each be compensated up to $600 per month, according to the board’s compensation resolution.

However, a director’s payment will most likely amount to $200 each month because of the board’s biweekly meetings, said Ethan Bertrand, Isla Vista Community Service District (I.V. CSD) president.

This amounts to $100 per meeting, regardless of the meeting’s length.

The seven directors – Ethan Bertrand, Natalie Jordan, Spencer Brandt, Jay Freeman, Father Jon-Stephen Hedges, Robert Geis and George Thurlow – will now also be reimbursed for any traveling expenses incurred while on I.V. CSD business.

“Obviously this is not a living wage, this is not a big salary or anything. This this is just a basic payment,” Bertrand said.

“Public service is absolutely important and we’re privileged to do the work that we do, but we want to make sure that people who want to get involved in their community and serve in this capacity can have at least a little more assistance and financial security.”

The resolution passed with four yes votes and one abstention by Director Thurlow.

Directors also have the option to waive their payments or accept the money and immediately return it to the board, an option Thurlow said he would be following.

There is approximately $16,800 in allocations for the year to compensate directors for their time, according to the I.V. CSD’s 2018-19 budget.

The board has been discussing this for about two months, following an acquisition of the I.V. CSD’s funding through Measure R, Bertrand said.

The I.V. CSD’s policy committee is creating a policy for what can be reimbursed. The committee will discuss this during its Policy Committee Regular meeting on Nov. 8.

“This is something that will make service in the board of directors more inclusive,” Bertrand said.

“We recognize that we have very limited finances, and we want to be respectful of that while also making sure there’s a basic level of pay to just assist with the incredible amount of work that goes into this.”

Print

Evelyn Spence
Evelyn Spence harbors a great love for em dashes and runs on nothing but iced coffee, Jolly Ranchers and breaking news. She serves as the managing editor and can be reached at evelyn@dailynexus.com, managing@dailynexus.com or at @evelynrosesc on Twitter.