In early June, the Quincy City Council in Massachusetts passed a proposal to increase Mayor Thomas Koch’s annual salary from $159,000 to $285,000, sparking heated discussions in the local community.
This salary raise will officially take effect on January 1, 2025. Prior to this raise, Mayor Koch’s salary had remained unchanged for 10 years. He has been serving as the Mayor of Quincy since 2008 and has been re-elected for a seventh term.
Earlier this year, the Quincy city government hired the independent consulting firm “Dorminson Consulting” to study the Mayor’s salary increment proposal. The company suggested that a reasonable annual salary for Koch should be between $298,000 and $370,000. The basis for this proposal, as stated by the company to the City Council, includes the Consumer Price Index, the population of Quincy, and salary data of 1,200 local executive officers nationwide.
According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, Quincy’s population slightly exceeded 100,000 in 2022. The local government salary database shows that in 2023, the highest-earning public official in the city was Police Chief Paul Keenan, who earned approximately $386,000.
Regarding the salary raise for Mayor Koch, his Chief of Staff Christopher Walker stated to the City Council, “This figure is fair, reasonable, and in line with some other communities – some that may not be today, but will be in the next one or two years.”
The nearly 80% increase in salary has stirred discussions in the local community. Some residents believe that $285,000 is too much, leading to protests in front of the city hall in early June. Meanwhile, the Chinese community also expresses differing opinions.
Mr. Guo, who runs a real estate agency in Quincy, agrees with the Mayor’s salary raise and does not oppose the magnitude of the increase. Mr. Guo mentioned that Mayor Koch has “helped many people become wealthy” and “built the Quincy we see today,” which is why many businesses support him. “He (Koch) has done a lot for local businesses, more than any previous mayor. He deserves the increase,” said Mr. Guo.
Mr. Chi, a resident of Quincy, also supports Koch’s increase to the salary level he deems appropriate. He further stated that opposing opinions are not necessarily logical since any proposal for a raise will inevitably face opposition. For example, several staff members of a Chinese chamber of commerce wanted only a small increase in their allowances but faced opposition from many board members.
On the other hand, Ms. Xie, a resident of Quincy for 20 years, believes that the Mayor’s salary raise this time is excessive. She pointed out that Quincy is not a very large city, yet the Mayor’s salary is higher than some larger cities, which she finds unreasonable. Ms. Xie also complained that property taxes increase annually, along with other expenses like snow removal, adding burdens on residents.
In Massachusetts, Worcester, a city with roughly twice the population of Quincy, the City Manager in charge of all administrative affairs, Eric C. Batista, received over $310,000 in salary in 2023. However, Mayor Joseph M. Petty only earned around $40,000.
Boston does not have a city manager. Mayor Michelle Wu, for instance, received slightly over $200,000 in salary last year, with her annual salary set to increase to $250,000 in 2026.
The highest-paid local executive officer in the United States last year was the Mayor of San Francisco, California, who earned around $357,000. The Mayor of Los Angeles, California, received approximately $300,000. Meanwhile, the salary of the Mayor of New York City was $258,750 annually.