A small Long Island village had the highest-paid group of local government employees last year, according to the Empire Center’s 2015 “What They Make” report.
The village of Lloyd Harbor’s 12 police officers were paid an average of $187,973. A total of 175,327 records, detailing $9.31 billion in pay, were examined for the report, and are now searchable on SeeThroughNY, the Empire Center’s transparency website.
The data also show Peter F. Brower, the now-retired Ramapo police chief, was the highest-paid local government employee outside New York City last year. He was paid $369,088.
Forty of the 50 highest-paid local government employees were police officers. Twenty-four of them worked for Nassau County.
Notable findings from each region can be found here: Capital, Central New York, Finger Lakes, Long Island, Mid-Hudson, Mohawk Valley, North Country, Southern Tier and Western New York.
The report uses pay data reported to the New York State and Local Retirement System (NYSLRS) between April 1, 2014 and March 31, 2015. The amounts listed in the report do not include fringe benefits such as health insurance or employer pension contributions, which can add 35 percent or more to the cost for taxpayers.
The Empire Center is a non-partisan, non-profit independent think tank based in Albany. SeeThroughNY includes payroll and pension data for state and local government employees and retirees; detailed expenditure data for the state Legislature; comparative statistics on local government spending; a searchable database of state revenue and expenditures; and copies of all teacher union contracts and superintendent of schools contracts.
You may also like
Switching to Electric Home Heating Could Add Thousands to Energy Bills
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: ALBANY, N.Y. that heating an average home from October to March would cost approximately $790 with natural gas, compared with $1,100 with a heat pump and $3,300 with electr Read More
Poll: 64% of New Yorkers Back Eliminating the State Income Tax; 67% Say State Taxes Aren’t Delivering
Dissatisfaction spans party and regional lines as broad majorities rally behind sweeping tax reform
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: ALBANY, N.Y. - New Yorkers are delivering a blunt assessment of the state’s tax system: 67% say they ar Read More
SUNY Research Foundation Payroll Tops $400 Million
Payroll records for 8,401 employees of the Research Foundation for the State University of New York (RF SUNY) for fiscal year 2026 are , the Empire Center's government transparency website.
The Research Foundation is a private, nonprofit educational co Read More
Newly Retired NYC Firefighters Average Over $177k In Pensions
New York City firefighters and fire officers retiring last year after full careers were entitled to average annual pension benefits of $177,016, according to , the Empire Center's government transparency website.
Among the 499 new retirees with at leas Read More
New York Annual Household Electricity Costs Rise $270
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ALBANY, N.Y. — New York’s average residential electricity price reached 29.90 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) in July 2026, the fifth highest in the nation and 63.3 percent Read More
Taxes, the Cost of Living, and Feeling Ignored: Why New Yorkers Are Thinking of Leaving
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE ALBANY, N.Y. - New Yorkers across the political spectrum are considering leaving the state. A new finds that Republicans and independent voters most often cite taxes as the reason, while Dem Read More
Albany Steers Nearly $100 Million in 2026 Pork Barrel Spending
Albany steered $97.2 million to 206 local projects during the first half of 2026 in the newest batch of state discretionary grants, according to. The new tranche is the latest addition to the pork-barrel grant database the Empire Center h Read More
New York’s Electricity Prices Fifth Highest in the Country
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
ALBANY, N.Y. — Empire Center’s shows New York households paid the fifth‑highest residential electricity prices in the country in June 2026, trailing only Hawaii, California Read More