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Photos of the Cottle Cafeteria Proposal Only. There is work elsewhere, also being proposed.
![]() Lawmakers returned for a one-day special session to approve raises for themselves that will make them the highest-paid state legislators in the nation. ALBANY, N.Y. — With inflation raging and the midterm election in the rearview mirror, New York’s lawmakers returned to the State Capitol on Thursday on important business: giving themselves a $32,000 raise. The wage increase to $142,000, which comes four years after the lawmakers got their most recent holiday-time bump in pay, made the state’s 213 elected legislators the best compensated in the nation, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. [The Senate approved the salary increase by a 33-23 vote, which barely surpassed the 32 minimum votes needed for passage. The Assembly voted 81-52 in favor of the bill.] The final decision on the pay raise will lie with Ms. Hochul, a recently re-elected Democrat. As of Thursday, the governor had not officially said she will sign off, though she has previously suggested that a raise was merited. The new base pay for New York lawmakers will rise to $142,000 from $110,000, a salary that is roughly twice the median household income in the United States. [New] limits on outside income will not be absolute: Lawmakers can still earn up to $35,000 a year for outside jobs, and legislative leaders, committee chairs and ranking members of finance and codes committees will continue to earn an additional stipend — commonly known as a “lulu” — for their work. The $35,000 limit also doesn’t take effect until 2025, unlike the raise, which will take effect on Jan. 1. Indeed, the looming calendar-flip is why legislators flocked back to the capital on Thursday; once the new Legislature is seated for its two-year term, it can no longer give itself a raise. The State Constitution only allows lawmakers to grant raises to future seated Legislatures. source: NYT By Jesse McKinley The 29% pay hike drew criticism from some legislators — mostly Republicans — who said it sent a poor message to increase their pay when many families are struggling to make ends meet, as well as legislative staffers who criticized legislators for failing to boost their salaries, too. But Democratic leaders defended the increase, saying it was necessary to attract the best and brightest to Albany. New York’s 150 Assembly members and 63 state senators currently make their base salary in addition to a $183 per diem for each night they spend in Albany, which is meant to cover accommodations and food. About a dozen lawmakers also receive stipends for leadership roles. Their current $110,000 salary took effect in 2019 (at that time receiving a 39% raise). Senate Majority Leader Andrea Stewart-Cousins (D-Yonkers) said the bigger bump was an attempt to keep up with inflation. It will also include a $35,000 cap on the amount of outside income lawmakers can earn, though that won’t take effect until 2025. Stewart-Cousins said the delay will ensure that those who were elected last month — who ran assuming they could earn unlimited outside income — won’t be unfairly affected.
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