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Image credit: Al Drago for The New York Times
— Quincy Massachusetts News by Quincy Quarry News – News, Opinion and Commentary
$top the $teal!!!
Image via Reuters
Irate Quincy taxpayers are planning to protest Quincy Mayor Thomas P. Koch’s proposed 80% or thereabouts pay raise this evening in front of City Hall from 5 pm to 6 pm.
Fortunately for Mayor Koch, Quincy City Hall closes at 4:30 pm and he will thus be able to avoid facing the protesters.
If approved, the proposed raise to $285,000 a year would make Mayor Koch the highest pay mayor in Massachusetts as well as one of the highest paid mayors in the United States.
“I’m in the money!”
Image via danieldervartanian.com
For but two examples, Koch is seeking $78,000 more pay than the annual salary paid to Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and over $26,000 a year more than what is paid to New York City Mayor Eric Adams.
Similarly outrageous, the average hourly wage paid Massachusetts mayors is $32 a hour and thus $64,000 a year based on an SOP 2,0000 hour work year.
Mayor Koch, on the other hand, is seeking to score $142.50 an hour — well over fourfold more — to serve as the mayor of what is a small city that ranks as but the 327th most populated city in the United States per 2023 data.
Boss Hogg seeks to pig out at the public trough …
A ThePeoplesVoice.org graphic image
Further, as near as Quincy Quarry News can discern, Mayor Koch is seeking to become the highest paid city employee on a base pay before overtime basis.
As Quincy Quarry News ever-growing legions of readers will recall, an all but perennial highest paid City of Quincy employee inclusive of overtime ended up a guest of Club Fed after his conviction for double and sometimes even triple dipping.
Also, as exposéd by Quincy Quarry News, the so-called compensation study commissioned by Mayor Koch was not a duly independent study.
For example, the apparently but two-person out of town consulting firm that made up the study has done other entirely different work for the City of Quincy.
Not exactly A work …
A public domain file photo
The consultants also appear to have other ties to Mayor Koch’s Director of Municipal Finance.
Even more problematic, the firm’s principals conceded during their presentation of their pay raise recommendations that compensation studies are not their usual métier and such clearly showed per the Quarry’s review of their so-called work product.
Further problematic, per further investigative reporting by Quincy Quarry News, Mayor Koch’s last pay raise as well as multiple pay raises for Quincy City Council members when the mayor received his last raise as well as since would clearly appear to have not been duly approved by local voters per Section 17A of the City of Quincy’s ordinances.
Accordingly, it would thus appear that Mayor Koch has seen roughly $270,000 in pay not duly authorized by voters and various members seeing roughly a total of $400,000 among them that also appears to have not been duly approved.
The city salaries are ridiculous. Police supervisors making hundreds of thousands of dollars & now a Mayor without a degree wanting $285,000. Most City Managers have a minimum of a Master’s Degree & many have accounting degrees. The City Solicitor (Hired by the Mayor) will of course dismiss the Charter & rule it has expired. He won’t bite the hand that feeds him. What price do these people think they could demand in the private sector? (You know the sector where you work 5 days a week, get 2 or 3 weeks vacation and no pension?) Where your promotion is earned & isn’t based on your genealogy or political donation$. Maybe a certain property company in Quincy who gets all the perks could pick up the tab!
After over 20 years of working for the city I’m getting a 3% raise which will amount to about $1.14 more an hour. What will I do with all that extra cash?
Lucky,
Are you familiar with the concept of mordita?
If the charter expires then so does Quincy. The problem is who enforces it with checks and balances.
Maybe if we all contact the municipal law unit as this raise would be an illegal amendment and the municipal law unit reviews all changes in a town charter.
This is from the Home Rule ratified in 1966 — the Home Rule Amendment to the Massachusetts Constitution (Article 89) explicitly provides that every city or town in the Commonwealth is entitled to a charter and outlines the process for the adoption, revision and amendment of a charter.
So Timmins is claiming to the Quincy Sun that he is following Mass Chapter 39 section 6a. He states this overrides the town charter but I can’t find any vote that modifies the City Charter.
Except from the first line — “Notwithstanding the provisions of any city charter to the contrary, the mayor and the members of the city council, or other legislative body of a city, shall receive for their services such salary as the city council or other legislative body of a city shall by ordinance determine …”
https://malegislature.gov/Laws/GeneralLaws/PartI/TitleVII/Chapter39/Section6A
I have found the original salary issued in 1956 by the state.
https://archive.org/details/actsresolvespass1956mass/page/86/mode/2up
Mr Timmins is clearly on the mayors side.
Internhelper,
Have you reviewed City Solicitor “Dim” Timmins’ record upon appeal or other sorts of outside reviews by outside higher authorities? He should legally change his name to “0 for”
Similarly, while not a formal legal read, “Notwithstanding” usually is a manner of catch all meaning basically except in the case of …
In short. batters up!! Dim’s head is yet again heading for placement on top of a T-ball tee!
Yes, Mr. Timmins is on the mayor’s side. Since he is now also a property developer within the city of Quincy, staying on the mayor’s good side is important to him.
Even if the state law does supersede the town charters, it’s important to keep in mind that the town charter’s language indicates the principle upon which this process is meant to follow. The language in the charter is looking to avoid just what is happening here.
The fact that this process includes the city council is obscene…the mayor is basically paying the city councilors to vote in his favor.
Nothing screams “public service” like giving yourself a stupendous pay raise while everyone else tightens their belts. Mayor Thomas P. Koch must be working so hard – clearly, the only logical reward for his unparalleled dedication is a fatter paycheck. I mean, it’s not like there are pressing issues that money could go toward. Infrastructure? Education? Social services? Psh, who needs those when you can line your own pockets instead? Bravo, Mayor Koch, for redefining the term “public servant” to mean “self-serving.” I’m sure the citizens of Quincy are just thrilled to fund your fabulous lifestyle.
Of course, if this obscene money grab is rubber-stamped by the city council (lets see if the bait is sweet enough) and the Lord Mayor isn’t elected again, we’re still on the hook for his obscene pension — for years and years and . . .
Any city councilor who votes to approve this steal needs to be unseated.
Hopefully, when the feds complete their audit of Clasby they then look into the grand theft of other grant money.
Where did all the state money go that was given to the City for the new Marine Center? After taking properties by eminent domain and building a ramp, the City has stopped work. They should return the properties (with interest and shut down the boat ramp.
Where is Milk Carton Dave McCarthy? That’s right, he’s in the pocket of Tommy. Needs his Blue Koch shot every day.
Every Federal Grant that this City has received under the Koch regime should be audited. That might start to clean up this mess.
How about the new floats at Squantum Yacht Club? Since when do we use public monies on private Yacht Clubs? This administration needs an enema.
Again, every councilor who votes for this pay raise should be replaced.