Even as Mayor Mike McGinn was issuing an executive order freezing the salaries of all managers and strategic advisors in the city, McGinn himself received an automatic cost-of-living raise of more than $3,000. The raise, which went into effect on January 6 of this year, brought McGinn's salary to $169,954.84. However, McGinn spokesman Aaron Pickus says the mayor is committed to reducing his salary by $10,000.

According to a December 28, 2009 email from Cindy Eckholt, a former manager for the Department of Executive Administration who has since left the city, McGinn's salary can't be changed while he's in office; however, "he can donate his salary to charities or back to the City."

McGinn spokesman Aaron Pickus says McGinn "has committed to reducing his salary by $10,000." Pickus is still looking into how that reduction might work in practice.