Honolulu’s Salary Commission tentatively approved a 4.7% pay increase for top elected and appointed city officials, including the mayor, managing director, and nine-member City Council.
If the commission gives final approval at its April 22 meeting, the raises will take effect July 1, the start of fiscal year 2027.
Under the proposal, Mayor Rick Blangiardi’s salary would rise to $236,705 from $226,080. The Council chair’s pay would increase to $137,801 from $132,048, and Council members’ salaries would rise to $127,801 from $122,064.
Other proposed increases included the managing director to $226,403 from $216,240, department heads to $211,477 from $201,984, the police chief to $261,306 from $249,576, the fire chief to $253,014 from $241,656, the prosecuting attorney to $215,343 from $214,272, and the medical examiner to $435,569 from $416,016.
After the City Council’s 64% pay increase in 2023, voters approved a charter amendment in November 2024 capping future Council raises at 5% a year and requiring them to match the average of the most recent salary changes for the city’s collective bargaining units. The measure received a little more than 90% of the vote.
Council spokesperson Andrew Phomsouvanh said, “Council members have no role in determining their own compensation under the current Charter.” He added that the Council recognized residents faced high living costs, economic uncertainty, and storm damage.
Mayor’s communications director Scott Humber said the recommendation followed the voter-approved charter process and “reflects a commitment to pay city leadership a fair value for their service to the public.”
Commissioner Elmer Ka‘ai Jr., who chaired a permitted interaction group that reviewed the salaries, said the proposal reflected a “thoughtful, data-driven and balanced approach to public-sector compensation.” He said the group reviewed past commission decisions, city human resources data, collective bargaining trends, and economic indicators, including the consumer price index.
Commission Chair Sarah Guay noted that recent storms and the city’s proposed $5.08 billion budget for fiscal 2027 were also factors. Although she asked whether commissioners wanted to consider a 4% increase instead, the commission kept the 4.7% proposal.
No one testified at Monday’s meeting. In written testimony, Hawaii Kai resident Natalie Iwasa opposed the proposal, saying raises should be limited to inflation, which she said was about 2.6%, given storm-related costs and budget pressures.
