Mayor's Brother Sees Salary Cut From $210K to $1

Eric Adams' appointment of Bernard runs into city ethics trouble
By John Johnson,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 27, 2022 3:04 PM CST
Salary of NYC Mayor's Brother Is Cut From $210K to $1
New York City Mayor Eric Adams.   (AP Photo/John Minchillo)

For a while there, it looked like Eric Adams' election as mayor of New York City was going to result in a $210,000 payday for brother Bernard. But a city review board that looked into the matter has ruled that Bernard can receive only a token $1 salary, reports Gothamist. Upon taking office, the mayor named his brother—a retired NYPD sergeant—as head of mayoral security with the cushy six-figure salary above. That raised ethical concerns for the city's Conflicts of Interest Board, which made its ruling public Thursday after talks with the mayor's office, per the New York Times.

Bernard will indeed accept the security post, but the only compensation he'll get from the city is the $1 salary. However, the 56-year-old will continue to collect his annual $64,000 pension from the police department. Other changes: Instead of falling under the umbrella of the NYPD, his post as "senior adviser for mayoral security" will be under the mayor's office. And no city employees will be allowed to report to him.

“Bernard Adams is uniquely qualified for this job, and in order to avoid even the appearance of a conflict of interest, he offered to serve for the nominal salary of $1,” says a mayoral spokesman. “We made this proposal to the Conflicts of Interest Board and they’ve agreed, and we’re grateful to Bernard for being willing to serve the city for no salary.” City rules bar public officials from using their position to “obtain any financial gain” for themselves or “any person or firm associated with the public servant," per Gothamist. That latter distinction includes siblings. (More Eric Adams stories.)

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