Local government is a labor-intensive business, and employee compensation is the single biggest element of most municipal budgets. The 2013-14 edition of What They Make, the Empire Center's annual report on public payrolls, allows New York taxpayers to compare this key element of local government costs around the state... Read More
The Empire Center for Public Policy today released the 2014 edition of “What They Make,” an overview of local government payrolls for the counties, towns, cities and villages (outside New York City) for the period of April 1, 2013 to March 31, 2014. Read More
Charles E. Ewald was paid $414,527 by Suffolk County. Read More
Cheektowaga and Hamburg (village) police are the highest-paid in Western New York, with average pay near $100,000. Read More
The highest-paid local government employee in the region was Onondaga Community College Senior Vice President David W. Murphy, who was paid $195,462. The second highest-paid employee was Jason T. Stepkovitch, a psychiatrist who was paid $189,894 by Cortland County. Read More
The Center’s analysis revealed that all 11 of the highest-paid municipal employees in the North County (Clinton, Essex, Franklin, Jefferson, Lewis and St. Lawrence counties) were employed by Massena Memorial Hospital or Lewis County General Hospital; 10 of these employees had the same pay ($255,000) during this period. Read More
The two highest-paid local government employees in the region were Utica police officers Wayne A. Manolescu, who was paid $162,559, and James B. Watson, Jr., who was paid $153,697. Read More
The property tax cap for New York counties, towns and villages with fiscal years starting January 1, 2015 will start at 1.56 percent, slightly lower than last year's starting rate of 1.66 percent. The cap in each locality will vary based on the amount of applicable allowable exclusions for growth in local property values. Localities also will be able to exclude the amount by which the change in pension contributions exceeds two percentage points Read More