Heralding Trump's Accomplishments Read More on Page 18 August 25, 2017 | 3 Elul 5777
Vol. 14, Iss. 33
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Taxpayers Spending Millions to Fund de Blasio’s ‘Special Assistants’ as ‘Hizzoner’ Bashes Them
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio over the past fiscal year has increased spending on his "special assistants" by $4.6 million, expanding their ranks by 13 percent and handing out raises to those already on staff. These employees, who are vaguely titled as aides and whose salaries are taxpayer-funded, make up 40 percent of de Blasio's staff.
By: Katelyn Caralle
N
ew York City Mayor Bill de Blasio over the past fiscal year has increased spending on his "special assistants" by $4.6 million, expanding their ranks by 13 percent and handing out raises to those already on staff. These employees, who are vaguely titled as aides and whose salaries are taxpayer-funded, make up 40 percent of de Blasio's staff, the New York Post reported Sunday night. His staff 's collective salaries were bumped by 25 percent, up to $23.3 million, from fiscal year 2016, according to payroll records. Four members of his staff raked in
more than $200,000 each, while those paid more than $100,000 each jumped to 84 individuals, up about 30 percent. De Blasio had four of his special assistants transferred to the Department of Veterans Services, off-loading around $540,000 from the Mayor's Office. "When you want to give someone a big raise, it's easier if you say they're doing a different job," a former city official told the Post. The source said that de Blasio has greater flexibility to increase salaries, funded by taxpayer money, for aides by assigning them the title "special assistant." One City Hall spokesman said the use of this title gives the de Blasio administration "more flexibility in de-
manding varied types of work from senior officials." Chief of staff Kevin O'Brien is one of de Blasio's highest paid special assistants; his annual salary increased from $175,000 to $220,652 since fiscal year 2016.
""I'm not raising this again: fix it, or I will [have] no choice but to find a way to penalize people. Not my preference, but I won't have my instructions ignored" – Bill deBlasio The Post first revealed last year that de Blasio increased the number of special assistants by 140 percent
compared to his predecessor, former Mayor Mike Bloomberg; de Blasio responded by ignoring a Post reporter at a news conference and calling the paper a "right-wing rag." "It just shows a complete disregard for the taxpayers of the city and it also displays his mismanagement—because we're not even getting results," likely Republican challenger Nicole Malliotakis said of de Blasio's staff salaries. On August 9, the Washington Free Beacon reported that de Blasio treated his staffers poorly and often bullied them with harsh threats if they did not meet his demands, according to newly revealed emails. "What do I need to get you guys to follow a direct order? Do you need to
experience consequences?" he threatened in one 2015 email, according to the New York Post. "I'm not raising this again: fix it, or I will [have] no choice but to find a way to penalize people. Not my preference, but I won't have my instructions ignored," he added. The emails show de Blasio blowing up at nearly a dozen staffers for "failing to make sure phonetic versions of challenging words were included in his speeches and talking points," according to the Post. "This is literally the 100th time I am reminding you all that phonetic spellings require one syllable to be capi-
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