If most people working for a wage got the salary boost that Chilliwack city council received 12 months ago, they'd be ecstatic, to say the least.

Councillors, who are considered to be doing a part-time job, are now making more than $31,000, more than many hardworking Chilliwack residents pull in for full-time work.

The mayor's pay for 2011 was more than $87,000 and, depending on the Vancouver Consumer Price Index, could top $90,000 for 2012.

This is thanks to a recently-introduced formula that creates a feedback loop with other municipalities that do something similar.

The city's formula is based on the average salaries of the five B.C. municipalities immediately larger than Chilliwack and the five immediately smaller.

And while that certainly seems fair, the problem is that many other communities in the Lower Mainland and Fraser Valley do the same thing. They may use a formula of their own (as the Township of Langley does) or they may make informal surveys to determine what the "average" salary is for a town of 50,000, or 80,000, or 100,000, like Chilliwack does.

That means it only takes one or two councils to give themselves big raises to skew the whole system. Council A gives itself a 10 per cent raise. Council B notices and gives itself a boost, too. Council C uses a formula based on Councils A and B. Council D notices that it's falling behind and needs a raise.

Then Council A has to catch up, based on its neighbours' pay hikes . . .

The mayor and six city councillors at the City of Chilliwack are by no means overpaid for the work they do.

However, city hall should cut itself off from this game of mathematical oneupmanship. Councillors should be paid a fair wage for people who put in a lot of long hours. But increases should be based on inflation, the Consumer Price Index, staff wage increases, or some other factor that isn't tied to other councils.

Raises are currently justified by saying "Well, Langley got a raise." Which sounds an awful lot like a kid angling to get his allowance raised, not like good policy.