The Salary of an Elected Mayor
Mayors are the chief executives and highest-ranking elected officials in their cities. Typically, each municipality's city charter states the salary a mayor receives. The size of the municipality and its tax base are significant factors when a city decides how much to pay its mayor. In some smaller communities mayors receive little or no remuneration for their services, but in larger cities the mayor's salary can be well into six figures.
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Basic Salary Data
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Mayors are often not the highest-paid city officials, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. For 2008, the BLS reported that mayors earned a median salary of $44,928 annually. By contrast, sheriffs and police chiefs earned a median annual salary of $54,143 and fire chiefs earned $79,123 per year.
Mayors of Major Metropolitan Areas
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Mayors of large metropolitan areas have high-profile positions with significant responsibilities. As a rule, they receive the highest salaries. For example, the charter for New York City fixes the mayor's salary at $225,000 annually at the time of publication. The mayor of Los Angeles earns between $195,238 and $232,426 per year, according to a 2010 report from the "Los Angeles Times." "The Texas Tribune" reported that Houston pays its mayor $209,138 annually.
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Mayors of Midsize Cities
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Salaries for mayors for smaller cities do not approach those of the major metropolitan areas. For example, "The Texas Tribune" reported salaries of $45,000 for the mayor of El Paso, $28,995 for the mayor of Fort Worth and $73,944 for the mayor of the state's capitol, Austin. Oklahoma City pays its mayor $24,000 per year, which is the highest salary for any mayor in the state, according to a 2011 report from the "Altus Times." The mayor of Long Beach, California, earns $127,602 annually, and the mayor's salary in nearby Inglewood is $111,300, according to the "Los Angeles Times."
Mayors of Smaller Cities
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The city of Eugene, Oregon, pays its mayors an hourly rate and considers them part-time employees. The average net pay was $21,519, according to a report from the local CBS affiliate, KVAL. Mayors in the Texas panhandle cities of Lubbock and Amarillo earn respective annual salaries of $901 and $520, and in the South Texas town of McAllen, the mayor receives no salary. The mayor of Wausau, Wisconsin, earns $74,851, according to WAOW, the local ABC affiliate.
Small Towns
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Wisconsin television station WAOW reports that the mayors of Rothschild and Schofield are both part-timers and that each earns no more than $8,000 annually. The mayor of Tahlequah, Oklahoma, receives a salary of $6,800 per year, according to the "Altus Times." In Shelby County, North Carolina, the mayors of Belwood, Casar, Earl, Fallstown and Polkville receive no salary, and the mayor of the county seat, Shelby, receives $9,180 per year, according to a report from the "Shelby Star." The "Los Angeles Times" reported in August 2010 that four nearby cities, Lancaster, Temple City, Arcadia and Signal Hill, had mayors with salaries less than $10,000 per year.
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References
- Bureau of Labor Statistics: Career Guide to Industries, 2010-11 Edition – State and Local Government, Except Education and Health
- City of New York: New York City Charter
- Los Angeles Times: Council Pay in Vernon, Inglewood and Compton is High, but Bell is Still No. 1
- The Texas Tribune: Government Employee Salaries -- Mayor
- Altus Times: How Much Do Your City and County Public Servants Make?
- KVAL.com: How Much Do Your City and County Officials Earn?
- WAOW.com: How Much Do Your Elected Officials Make?
- ShelbyStar.com: How Much Do You Pay for Your Town Government?
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