New York Senate Bill S09329

New York 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 3/2/26
• Refer: 3/2/26

Caption

Raises legislator compensation to $180,000 beginning January 1, 2028, each year thereafter such salary shall be increased equal to the percentage increase, if any, in the consumer price index for all urban consumers (CPI-U).

Summary

S09329 would amend the Legislative Law to increase the annual salary of New York State legislators from $142,000 to $180,000 beginning January 1, 2028. After that date, the bill would require the salary to be adjusted annually for inflation based on the Consumer Price Index for All Urban Consumers (CPI-U), measured over the prior 12-month period ending September 30. If CPI-U does not increase, or if it decreases, no salary adjustment would be made, and salaries could not be reduced. The bill also preserves the existing budget-related withholding mechanism: if the state budget has not been passed by the start of a fiscal year, legislators’ bi-weekly salary payments would be withheld until budget passage, at which point the withheld amounts would be paid. The act would take effect on January 1 following the issuance of compensation recommendations by the New York State Commission on Legislative, Judicial, and Executive Compensation.

Impact

This bill would directly amend section 5 of the Legislative Law governing compensation for members of the legislature, changing the statutory salary schedule and adding an automatic cost-of-living adjustment tied to CPI-U. It would affect all state legislators by increasing base pay and indexing future pay to inflation, while leaving the budget-delay withholding rule in place. The bill would also interact with the work of the state compensation commission by making its effective date contingent on the issuance of compensation recommendations.

Sentiment

No committee transcript or vote record was provided, so there is no documented floor or committee sentiment in the supplied materials. The bill text itself frames the change as a response to expanded legislative duties, emphasizing competitiveness, transparency, diversity of representation, and ethical, independent governance. Based on that framing, the measure appears intended as a pro-compensation reform rather than a punitive or restrictive change.

Contention

The main likely point of contention is the size and timing of the pay increase for legislators, especially the jump to $180,000 and the automatic inflation adjustment. Supporters would likely argue that higher compensation is needed to attract qualified and diverse candidates and reflect the full-time nature of the job, while critics may view the increase as self-dealing or fiscally unnecessary. The bill’s continued withholding of pay when the budget is late may also be discussed as a accountability mechanism, though it does not change the underlying compensation increase.