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A Mayoral Minute regarding approval of a significant pay increase Hawkesbury City Council’s General Manager Elizabeth Richardson was adopted by a majority of councillors, with only two voting against the move.
The Mayoral Minute, moved by Cr Nathan Zamprogno and seconded by Cr Paul Veigel, was considered at the 10 March 2026 Council meeting and dealt with in closed session due to its personnel nature, took less than 3 minutes to be approved by a majority of Councillors.
What Council approved
Council resolved to receive and note the General Manager’s Performance Review Panel results for both 2024/2025 and 2025/2026.
Further Councillors approved a performance-based salary increase of 4 per cent, lifting the General Manager’s remuneration to $420,000, based on the 2024/2025 review.
They also endorse a further 3.5 per cent increase from 1 June 2026, bringing total remuneration to approximately $434,000.
Who assessed performance
The performance review was conducted by a panel comprising of Mayor Cr Les Sheather, Deputy Mayor Cr Sarah McMahon, Councillors Amanda Kotlash and Mary Lyons-Buckett.
The panel’s findings formed the basis for both the contract renewal and the salary adjustments.
Division in the chamber
While the resolution was carried, it was not unanimous. Councillors supporting the Mayoral Minute:
- Cr Les Sheather (Made the Mayoral Minute and is a member of the GM performance review panel)
- Cr Sarah McMahon (Deputy Mayor is a member of the GM performance review panel and supported the Mayoral minute)
- Cr Nathan Zamprogno (Moved the motion to pass the Mayoral Minute)
- Cr Paul Veigel (seconded the motion to pass the Mayoral Minute)
- Cr Amanda Kotlash (Is a member of the GM performance review panel and supported the Mayoral minute)
- Cr Mary Lyons-Buckett ( Is a member of the GM performance review panel and supported the Mayoral minute)
- Cr Danielle Wheeler
- Cr Peter Ryan
- Cr Jill Reardon
Two Councillors opposed the Mayoral Minute. They were Cr Mike Creed and Cr Shane Djuric. Both councillors have been consistent critics of the current council administration and its direction and opposed the 40% rate rise along with Cr Zamprogno.
Their opposition reflects ongoing tensions within Council around governance, accountability and executive performance.
Confidential decision, public implications
Although the matter was legally considered in a confidential session, the outcome has significant implications for the Hawkesbury community.
The General Manager is the most senior staff member in Council, responsible for financial management, planning and development systems, service delivery across the local government area.
The approved remuneration rising to more than $430,000 places the role among the higher-paid council executive positions in New South Wales, with the General Manager now recieving more that the NSW Premier Chris Minns .
Broader context
The decision comes at a time when Council is facing:
- A proposed 40 per cent rate increase
- Community concern over service levels and infrastructure delivery failures.
- Ongoing debate about governance and executive accountability
While the performance review panel endorsed the General Manager’s performance, details of the assessment, including key performance indicators and outcomes have not been made public.
Questions remain
The decision is likely to fuel further discussion in the community around:
- How executive performance is measured
- The link between performance outcomes and ratepayer impacts
- The level of transparency around senior staff remuneration
For now, Council has signalled its confidence in the General Manager through both contract renewal and pay increases but not all councillors, or members of the community, are convinced.
As Hawkesbury faces significant financial and planning challenges, scrutiny of leadership, both elected and administrative is only set to intensify.
The Gazette has written to all Councillors asking for comment and none responded.
