The Victorian Independent Remuneration Tribunal's decision could set a course for councils across the state including the City of Greater Bendigo.

Mayors are currently allowed $100,434 a year and councillors $31,444.

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The allowances are not technically a salary and are given "as recognition of the contributions made by those elected to voluntary, part-time roles in the community".

But a 2019 councillor survey found almost 60 per cent of councillors agreed with the statement "I do not get paid enough".

Former Bendigo mayor Laurie Whelan is among those who would not want to see the payments diminished, especially for the city's mayor.

"It's a full-time professional role and I believe the person in that role should be remunerated," he said.

Mr Whelan sometimes sees ratepayers dismiss how hard councillors and mayors work during discussions about allowances.

He suspects those people would change their minds if they knew how hard councillors worked.

"There is a past view that their work was once more of a voluntary role and councils have changed a lot," Mr Whelan said.

"They are a lot bigger, they demand a lot more time in terms of reading reports and helping develop policy. People don't realise the complexity of policies and the framework councils now work under.

"Yes, there are some councillors who hold down a full-time job somewhere else and try to do it, but I can guarantee you they would be running by the skin of their pants in terms of reading all the reports and policies when they come to make a decision."

Mr Whelan said it was an issue in 2002 when his second council term ended and has only intensified since then.

Not everyone is convinced.

Former Bendigo councillor George Flack volunteered to slice 10 per cent off of his allowance when he served between 2016 and 2020.

"I took the view that the allowances were excessive and there should have been a step in the right direction by reducing them," he said.

"I still believe they are excessive and could come down."

The way Mr Flack sees it, councillors had a right to ask for a reduction, so why wouldn't they take it?

"That way you've demonstrated to the ratepayer that the allowances are in excess," he said.

Those sorts of arguments could become food for thought for the tribunal examining allowances.

Mr Flack is skeptical about how effective allowances were at attracting people from under-represented groups to the council table another matter the tribunal was asking for community feedback on.

He suspects the main reasons people chose to run for council was because they want to serve the community and believed they could make a difference.

But a discussion paper circulated by the tribunal suggests concerns about making ends meet can impact people's decision to stand for election, especially if they are women, young people or mid-career professionals.

It cites a 2008 review that found higher allowances would bring in more women and Victoria's councils.

Those changes triggered a rise roughly in line with Melbourne wage increases and have coincided with the share of women sitting at council tables and mayoral chairs hitting a record 43 per cent.

The discussion paper also notes campaigns, programs and mentoring systems the government was using to help it reach 50 per cent women mayors and councillors by 2050.

Currently, four women currently sit on Bendigo's council of nine. Five were elected in 2016, though that later dropped to four after several resignations and election countbacks.

The tribunal also wants public feedback on what sweeping changes triggered by the pandemic might mean for council allowances.

The state government has already warned its bureaucrats to expect tighter caps on their wage growth because of COVID-19.

The government is grappling with uncertain revenue because of the pandemic and is trying to find "efficiencies" to help with the $102 billion in net debt it expects to have by the end of the financial year.

The tribunal has noted that but added that pressure will be building for wider wage rises by December 2021, right when its decisions on councillor allowances should take effect.

Last May, the Reserve Bank of Australia said the economy had shifted from recovery to "expansion" much earlier than expected.

The bank expected dropping unemployment and rising inflation was going to help workers' wages rise.

That could shape the tribunal's thinking about if and when councillors' allowances could change.

All central Victorian councils have set their allowances for the 2021/22 financial year in decisions separate to the tribunal.

Bendigo councillors agreed in June to keep allowances at the same levels, which were still higher than other central Victorian councils but similar to ones with similar population levels, like Ballarat's.

Councillor Andrea Metcalf supported that decision, saying councillors would still effectively be paid less than the minimum wage to cover the time they spent on local government work.

"It is called an allowance for a reason and at this council table most of the councillors are also employed in some other capacity," she said.

Councillor Matthew Evans agreed and said it was important people know allowances were not the reason anyone at the council had stood for election.

"We do this job because we care about the issues in our community. That is always at the forefront," he said.

To view the tribunal's discussion paper or make a submission, visit www.vic.gov.au/victorian-independent-remuneration-tribunal

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