In theory, each City Council member's office gets the same budget. In reality, some get much more

"Officially, each member of the City Council is allocated $521,000 to run their office per year. But annual spending reports obtained by City & State show a wide range of actual spending, with a select few in leadership roles spending hundreds of thousands above the rest. Take Council Member Rafael Salamanca, who chairs the powerful Land Use Committee. His office has spent more than $700,000 for the past three years. In 2025, he spent $787,878 when the average spend was $550,797, according to the reports."

"Finance Chair Justin Brannan spent a total of $888,388 in 2025, according to the report, the highest amount in the council by far. Granted, he opened up and staffed a second district office for the first time in that fiscal year, after redistricting left Council District 47 with an odd shape, stringing together Coney Island and Bay Ridge with a narrow strip of Dyker Heights. Brannan spent almost $300,000 less the year before that for a total of $591,564, and spent $495,453 in 2023."

"City & State obtained the City Council's annual expense reports from fiscal years 2020 to 2025 through a Freedom of Information Law request. These documents are prepared by the speaker's office and are made accessible to all council members, but aren't posted publicly. The very last page of each report lists each council member's "statement of funds used" - including what they spent on staff salaries (which makes up the bulk of the total) and on "other than personnel services" expenses, called OTPS."

Each City Council member is officially allocated $521,000 annually for office operations, but actual expenditures vary widely across members. Some council leaders spend significantly above the allocation, with Rafael Salamanca's office exceeding $700,000 annually and Justin Brannan spending $888,388 in 2025. The reports obtained through a Freedom of Information Law request cover fiscal years 2020–2025 and include line items for staff salaries and OTPS (other than personnel services). Staff salaries comprise the bulk of spending. Rent had previously driven disparities by district, but the speaker's office began covering rent in 2022.

Read at City & State NY