The mayors of eight capitals receive higher salaries than the governors of their respective states, with differences of up to R$20,000. The gross salary of municipal directors reaches R$52,000 per month, a figure that exceeds the constitutional ceiling (R$46,366.19).
The biggest difference noted was between the mayor of Cuiabá, Abilio Brunini (PL), and the governor of Mato Grosso, Mauro Mendes (União). While Mendes receives a gross salary of R$32,300 per month, Brunini earns R$52,900.
Brunini’s remuneration consists of a base salary of R$34,900, subject to income tax and the constitutional ceiling, and a compensation amount of R$18,000 per month, which is not taxed by IR and can exceed the ceiling. As a result, the mayor of the capital of Mato Grosso receives more than the President of the Republic and the ministers of the STF (Federal Supreme Court).
The amount was set by a 2021 municipal law, which entitles people to R$18,000 for “non-receipt of daily allowances, advances, allowances, cell phone costs, security, food”, in the event of outside activities in the municipality and for other office expenses.
In a note, the town hall specifies that the mayor’s basic salary does not exceed the ceiling, as provided for by the Constitution, but that the amount of compensation is authorized by local legislation and has legitimacy recognized by the control bodies.
The administrative reform, tabled in the House at the end of October, sets limits on the salaries of mayors, which cannot exceed 80% of those of governors. However, the change only applies to smaller cities, which rely more on state and federal funding.
Asked about the proposal not to extend the rules to capitals, deputy Pedro Paulo (PSD-RJ), who chaired the working group on reform in the Chamber of Deputies, said that the salaries of these mayors are defined autonomously, but limited by a ceiling.
“I think it’s enough: whoever abuses it will have to face the weariness of their voters,” he declared.
Another mayor with a big difference in salary compared to the governor is Eduardo Paes (PSD), from Rio de Janeiro. Paes receives R$35,608 per month, while Cláudio Castro, head of the state executive, earns R$21,868. Paes is one of Pedro Paulo’s main political allies.
In a statement, Rio City Hall said Paes’ salaries are set by municipal law, approved by the city council. Management has not commented on the fact that the figures exceed the governor’s salary.
Ricardo Nunes (MDB), mayor of São Paulo, is the second highest paid in the country, behind that of Cuiabá. Nunes earns a gross salary of R$39,000, higher than the governor of São Paulo, Tarcísio de Freitas (Republicans), whose monthly salary is R$36,000.
The City of São Paulo specifies that the salary is set by the City Council, as provided for in the Constitution.
In Recife, Mayor João Campos (PSB) receives a salary of R$25,000, higher than the R$22,400 expected for the state governor. However, Raquel Lyra (PSD) is also a prosecutor in Pernambuco and therefore chose to receive salaries for this position, which are higher. So, in practice, Campos receives less than Raquel.
When contacted, the town hall did not respond to the report’s questions.
Other capitals where mayors earn more than governors are Curitiba, Goiânia, Fortaleza and Florianópolis.
In a note, the Goiânia City Hall, under the leadership of Sandro Mabel (União), specifies that the salaries of the mayor, deputy mayor and municipal secretaries were defined by the previous legislature and came into force in September 2024. There were no adjustments in 2025 and 2026.
The leaders of Eduardo Slaviero (PSD) in Curitiba, Evandro Leitão (PT) in Fortaleza and Topázio Neto (PSD) in Florianópolis did not respond to the report’s questions.
The administrative reform brings a series of changes to the municipalities. In addition to limiting mayors’ salaries, the text also proposes limits on councilors’ expenses and the number of municipal services, among other things.
These rules only apply to cities where public administration expenditure exceeds current net revenue, with the exception of capital cities. In the case of the mayor’s salary ceiling and the number of secretariats, developments also vary depending on the number of inhabitants of the municipalities.
The most recent data on municipal GDP, from the IBGE, show that there are two capitals where public administration is the main source of income: Macapá (AP) and Boa Vista (RR). If the rule provided for by the reform applied to capitals, the two mayors would be affected by the salary ceiling of the reform.
Under this proposal, mayors of cities with 300,000 to 500,000 residents could earn only 70% of governors’ salaries. In Macapá, Mayor Antônio Furlan (MDB) receives R$31,920, while in Boa Vista, Mayor Arthur Henrique Brandão (MDB) earns R$24,789.20. These figures represent 96.7% and 72% of the salaries of the governors of Amapá and Roraima, respectively.
Ursula Peres, professor of public management at USP, defends the inclusion of measures limiting the salaries of mayors so that they do not exceed those of governors, in the text of the reform.
She says that the number of inhabitants should not be one of the main criteria for establishing the rules applicable to municipalities.
“A mayor of São Paulo and Rio will not earn the equivalent of the mayor of Borá (interior of São Paulo), either in nominal value or as a percentage of income. How can we regulate this so that everyone earns less than the governor and with consistency, guaranteeing autonomy?”
According to the professor, we should think about local management indicators that combine financial variables, diagnosis of state capacity and inequalities to stratify municipalities beyond population.
“There is great municipal heterogeneity, which is not limited to population issues. There is much more complexity of variables in municipalities than simple population, which must be taken into account when we develop administrative rules,” explains the professor.
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