Bratina’s $10K contribution questioned

Hamilton mayor Bob Bratina took some cash from his office budget Wednesday and handed it over to the United Way.

The ten thousand dollar donation is helping the agency reach its campaign goal. “After reviewing our office expenses, we found some significant savings thanks to the hard work of our chief of staff and the members of my office. So I know as a result of the meeting we had the other day with (Burlington) Mayor (Rick) Goldring, that there was still a need. So we thought we would direct the savings that we found — some of them — to make sure we hit that target. So on behalf of the Mayor’s office and the city of Hamilton, I’m really happy to present this cheque for 10,000 dollars and I hope that will get us a little closer to the goal.”

The mayor says the cash is coming from savings in staff salaries, but there are questions about wether or not the contribution is a violation of the city’s councillor contribution rules.