Quincy mayor offers to cut planned salary increase to $225,000

Facing backlash from city residents, Quincy Mayor Thomas Koch has proposed to pare back a 79% salary increase that would have put the mayor's pay ahead of the mayors of Boston, New York and Los Angeles.

Instead of the $285,000 salary already approved by the Quincy City Council, the mayor is now proposing an increase to $225,000 — up from the $159,000 he makes now.

Koch said in a statement that he understands “from talking to residents the feeling that the salary jump went too far.” Still, he said, he remains concerned that mayoral salaries are well under what city and town managers make in many Massachusetts communities.

“This position needs to attract and retain quality individuals to take on such an important role in our community,” Koch said in a press release. “I still believe that, but not at the expense of all those other issues where we as a community need to be focused.”

The 79% pay increase approved by the council turned into a major headache for Quincy’s mayor and his supporters. Last June, councilors voted unanimously for the raise, as well as a pay hike for their own positions.

The initiative sparked an effort by a local group to put a question on the Nov. 4 ballot to institute a more moderate pay increase. The group said it collected more than 7,000 signatures — well over the number required to get the question on the ballot — but Quincy’s City Clerk rejected more than a third of the signatures, arguing that many were illegible.

That led to a court challenge by three Quincy residents including local activist Joe Murphy, who said Wednesday that his co-plaintiffs need to decide whether the lawsuit will proceed.

He said he hopes a judge holds the city accountable for rejecting valid signatures.

“It wasn’t so much about the salary as much as the corruption of trying to keep people off the ballot,” Murphy said.

He added that by changing course on the raise, Koch seems to be trying to save council allies who are facing challengers in next week's election.

“He’s feeling Tuesday is not going to go well,” Murphy said. “A lot of them are in trouble, and a lot [comes] down to anger with him.”

Koch said he'll work with the council to amend the existing pay hike ordinance. In addition to the $225,000 mayoral salary, he will seek an automatic 3% annual increase. Koch also noted that the new salary would not take effect until after the next mayoral election in 2027.

Koch is Quincy's longest-serving mayor. He said he has not decided whether he'll run for an eighth term.