City Council Votes To Give Itself $36,000 Pay Raise
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- The City Council voted on Friday to give itself a hefty pay raise.
The approved proposal boosts council members' salaries to $148,500 — a $36,000 raise from their current $112,500 a year paycheck.
As part of the raise, council members are now considered full-time employees, and are required to give up any other forms of employment.
An independent Quadrennial Commission recommended a $26,000 raise last year, but City Council members advocated for an additional $10,000 raise.
Doug Muzzio, professor of Public Affairs at Baruch College, acknowledged that it's difficult to establish the dollar value of being a New York City Council member.
"What was really striking is they never went before their own commission to tell the commission what they wanted," said Muzzio. "So they have this commission, the commission says $138,000. They say 'that's nice, we want $148,000.' Um there's something wrong here."
Muzzio also pointed out to WCBS 880's Rich Lamb that the council is not voting a raise for the next council, but giving themselves a raise retroactive to the beginning of the year.
Mayor de Blasio has said he supports the pay increase.
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