San Antonio City Council Considers Six-Figure Pay Hike

San Antonio City Council and Mayor Ron NirenbergPhoto byX (Twitter)

San Antonio City Council is in discussion to increase their pay up to six figures from their current pay as well as the mayor’s. Last week, the Charter Review Commission subcommittee on council pay and compensation presented the proposal.

The subcommittee presented increasing City Council pay between $75,00 to $125,0000. In addition, the subcommittee presented to increase the mayor's annual pay to $90,000 up to $140,000.

City Council currently earns $45,722 in annual salary and Mayor Ron Nirenberg makes $61,725 a year.

The pay for City Council has remained the same since it was introduced in 2015, almost a decade ago. Many City Council members also hold a part-time job as well.

Former District 7 City Council member Ana Sandoval said pay was one reason she resigned from her job in 2023.

District 8 Council member Manny Pelaez was against the pay raises and said on Thursday according to SA Current:

"It is insensitive to vulnerable neighbors for us to consider a six-figure salary when so many vulnerable families are barely holding on."

The councilman also posted on X:

“I strongly oppose a salary increase for city council members. Of the big Texas cities, San Antonio has the second-highest poverty rate. Nearly half of San Antonians cannot cover basic expenses or are one emergency away from not being able to afford necessities.”

“Council, as conscientious stewards of the public’s tax dollars, should be asking itself how to better direct that money towards helping all of San Antonio thrive.”

Last year Mayor Ron Nirenberg asked the Charter Review Commission to review the pay for City Council to help encourage more people to apply for these positions.

A pay increase could see San Antonio City Council members make more than members in Dallas ($60,000), Phoenix ($61,600), and El Paso ($45,300) according to KSAT. City Council members in Austin make $116,688 a year.

You could see the city council pay in the upcoming election in November.

District 4 City Council member Adriana Rocha Garcia who also teaches at Our Lady of the Lake University said according to KSAT:

“The work that we do might be at a director level, and I appreciate that. But I also think that we need to be sensitive to what our residents are making in San Antonio and not be out of line with that.”

You can hear more details on the pay increase in this video:

Do you think the city council and the mayor deserve a pay raise?