Pay records for more than 168,000 county, city, town, village and other public employees were added today to SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s government transparency website.
In addition to the searchable data, the Empire Center released the updated edition of What They Make, its annual analysis of local government payrolls outside New York City. Notable findings include:
- A total of 1,187 local employees were paid more than Governor Kathy Hochul’s $250,000 salary, of whom 209 were paid over $300,000.
- Ninety-one of the state’s 100 highest-paid local government employees were police officers, all in the Mid-Hudson region or on Long Island; 40 were Nassau County police officers, 29 were Suffolk County police officers and 11 were Westchester County police officers.
- The highest-paid group of employees was the Village of Kensington police department, whose six police officers were paid an average of $228,772. Another six village police departments in Nassau County had average pay over $200,000. In total, the average pay for uniformed police or fire employees in 45 municipalities topped $150,000.
- Excluding villages, the police departments with the highest average uniform pay were Clarkstown ($199,506), Port Washington Police District ($187,050), Westchester County ($186,466), Ramapo ($183,392) and Glen Cove ($178,782).
- The fire departments with the highest average pay were Pelham Manor ($193,778), Long Beach ($169,307), Greenville Fire District ($158,490), Hartsdale Fire District ($157,575) and Yonkers ($149,561).
What They Make includes interactive tables allowing users to see how each municipality’s average pay of general government and uniformed employees ranks within each region and statewide. It also lists the name, employer and pay for each region’s highest-paid local government employees.
The data cover state fiscal year 2023 (April 1, 2022 to March 31, 2023). Individuals who worked while collecting a pension, or who do not participate in the state pension system, are not included in the data.
You may also like
132 NYSLRS Retirees Receive Pensions Over $200K in FY2026
A total of 132 retirees from the New York State and Local Retirement System (NYSLRS) were eligible to collect $200,000 or more in pensions during the 2026 fiscal year, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website.
Among the 132 Read More
Empire Center Poll: Just 4 Percent Approve of New York’s Education System
ALBANY, N.Y. — New Yorkers gave the state’s education system a sweeping vote of no confidence: 47 percent said the state should improve student performance, 41 percent said it should improve performance while spending less, and only 4 Read More
New York’s electricity prices climb to third highest in the U.S.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ALBANY, N.Y. — Empire Center’s shows New York households paid the third-highest residential electricity prices in the country in May 2026, trailing only Hawaii and California.
The latest U.S. Energy Information Administra Read More
Port Authority Payroll Passes $1.2B as 20 Employees Collect $400k+
Twenty Port Authority of New York and New Jersey (PANYNJ) employees collected more than $400,000 each in total pay last year, while average pay agencywide rose three percent, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website.
The Por Read More
NYC Employee Pension Payments Rise To $6.2 billion
The pension plan covering most New York city government agencies, including the City’s subway system, had 62 members with pension payments of at least $200,000 last year, according to , the Empire Center’s transparency website.
According to the d Read More
Empire Center Poll: New Yorkers Prioritize Low Energy Prices and Have Little Appetite for Radical Climate Policies
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ALBANY, N.Y. — New Yorkers across political, geographic, age, and income groups oppose energy and climate policies that raise energy prices or force changes on homeowners, according to new Empire Center analysis Read More
New York’s Electricity Prices Fourth Highest in the Country
New York households are paying the fourth-highest electricity prices in the country, according to the Empire Center's In April 2026, residential electricity prices in New York averaged 29.45 cents per kilowatt-hour - 56 percent above the national average Read More
Fourteen NYC Educators Receive Over Half a Million Dollars in Pensions
Fourteen retired New York City educators received more than $500,000 in pension benefits in 2025, according to , the Empire Center’s government transparency website.
The data was obtained from the New York City Teachers’ Retirement Read More