Overview
- The City Council voted 42-6 on Thursday to adopt a commission recommendation that raises salaries retroactive to Jan. 1, 2026.
- Rank-and-file council members will move from $148,500 to $175,500 a year and the mayor’s salary will rise to $305,800, with the raises costing about $2.6 million next fiscal year.
- Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Speaker Julie Menin both said they will decline the higher pay and the bill has been sent to the mayor’s desk awaiting his formal action.
- Lawmakers removed a proposed automatic cost-of-living adjustment after watchdog groups objected and required the next Quadrennial Advisory Commission to be appointed in 2028 to review future pay.
- Supporters say the raise restores lost purchasing power and helps broaden who can serve in office while opponents warned the vote damages public trust and highlighted partisan splits on timing and optics.