Over the weekend, the Daily News revealed that the City Council is plotting to vote themselves a salary increase as their current term nears its conclusion on December 31. Described as “scheming,” this move is deemed illegal. Should they proceed, it’s imperative that Mayor Adams vetoes it. Politicians will have to wait several years for any pay increase, sorry to say.
According to Section 27 of the City Charter, no local law or resolution can adjust salaries or allowances between the general election day and December 31 in any year when council members are elected. This rule aims to prevent the kind of behind-the-scenes salary boosts seen in Albany, where post-election pay raises take effect on January 1.
Queens Councilwoman Nantasha Williams informed The News about her proposed pay raise bill, which has approximately 30 cosponsors. This bill seeks to increase the existing Council salary from $148,500 to $172,500, marking a 16% rise. The problem lies not with the amount but with the timing; it’s simply too late. It would be inappropriate for the incoming Council and the new speaker, assuming office on January 1, to award themselves a pay increase. Such raises should be approved before the election and only implemented afterward.
This situation raises questions about the positions of the speaker candidates: Selvena Brooks-Powers, Amanda Farías, Crystal Hudson, Chris Marte, and Julie Menin. Are they supporting Williams’ bill, which contradicts the Charter? Do they believe the next Council deserves a pay raise? Is a salary boost part of their plan for the upcoming term if they become speaker? They need to provide clarity.
The new mayor, Zohran Mamdani, campaigned on affordability, a platform that did not include pay raises for elected officials. Any salary increase should adhere to the standard legal timeframe, which is several years away, rather than being unlawfully expedited by an outgoing Council.
As for the new mayor, Zohran Mamdani ran successfully on the issue of affordability. He wasn’t talking about pay raises for politicians. Any pay raise should wait until the normal legal time for such matters, which is many years from now, not illegally rushed through by a lame duck Council.
The Williams bill has not yet been introduced, which is supposed to happen tomorrow. We look forward to seeing the dozens of names on it who are so willing to blatantly violate the supreme law of the city, the Charter.
The last pay raise for the mayor, Council and other elected officials was in 2016. Under Section 3-601 of the city’s administrative code, that came from the recommendations of the Quadrennial Advisory Commission for the Review of Compensation Levels of Elected Officials. The Council adopted unaltered the report of the panel for all offices except their own, adding to the amounts received for Council members and the speaker. The panel wanted $138,315 for the Council and $154,375 for the speaker, but the greedy pols larded themselves another $10K plus change to set salaries at $148,500 and $164,500.
The Quadrennial Commission was supposed to meet in January 2020, but Mayor de Blasio never acted. It was then supposed to meet in January 2024, but Mayor Adams never set it up. The next meeting is supposed to be in January 2028. Mamdani should follow the law and set it up then.
We urged de Blasio to act, to no avail. We urged Adams to act, but he didn’t. We also urged the Charter Revision Commission to reform the pay raise procedure to prevent self pay raises, but they foolishly let it slide even as we warned a problem was coming. The problem is now here. Fix it in 2028 with a panel and increase the pay in 2030, following the 2029 elections. And will someone please finally amend the Charter to make all pay raises only take effect after an election?
