St. Petersburg Plans Officials’ Pay Raises Amid Budget Cuts

Sep. 30, 2026 St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov gov.spb.ru St. Petersburg plans to raise officials’ base salaries by up to 5% annually over the next three years while proposing sharp cuts to this year’s spending on education, health care and infrastructure, the RBC news website reported Wednesday. The pay increases are included in the city’s draft budget for 2027 and its spending plans for 2028 and 2029. The city government approved the document on Sept. 29 and submitted it to the Legislative Assembly. The plans would increase pay for lawmakers, deputy governors, city government members and other officials as the authorities seek to curb borrowing and narrow the budget deficit. Payments to Russian troops fighting in Ukraine and their families would also rise. The Legislative Assembly speaker’s monthly base salary would increase from about 149,100 rubles ($1,804) to 168,800 rubles ($2,042) by 2029. Base salaries for deputy speakers and deputy governors would reach 159,400 rubles ($1,929), while those for city government members would reach 154,700 rubles ($1,872). Officials’ total pay is higher because it includes allowances, bonuses and other supplementary payments. Separately, the city administration has proposed cutting its 2026 budget by 70.2 billion rubles ($849.4 million), from 1.651 trillion rubles ($19.98 billion) to about 1.58 trillion rubles ($19.12 billion). The largest reduction, 36.7 billion rubles ($444.1 million), would fall on spending classified under the economy. Transport spending would be cut by 9 billion rubles ($108.9 million), with another 10.8 billion rubles ($130.7 million) removed from construction of the Shirotnaya high-speed highway. Education spending would fall by 15.5 billion rubles ($187.6 million), while the health care committee’s budget would be reduced by 8.5 billion rubles ($102.9 million). Housing and utilities spending would be cut by about 6.8 billion rubles ($82.3 million). Spending on improvements to public spaces would fall by 2.3 billion rubles ($27.8 million), and road repairs would lose 1.9 billion rubles ($23 million). Meanwhile, payments to troops fighting in Ukraine and their families would increase by 6.4 billion rubles ($77.4 million). The city administration attributed the proposed spending cuts to high borrowing costs, a planned cooling of the economy and efforts to reduce borrowing. It said the revisions would narrow the 2026 budget deficit by about 80 billion rubles ($968 million), from 189 billion rubles ($2.29 billion) to 108.8 billion rubles ($1.32 billion). The draft budget projects a deficit of 103.4 billion rubles ($1.25 billion) in 2027. This article was translated with the help of artificial intelligence and was reviewed by a Moscow Times editor before publication. Learn more about our newsroom's AI policy here. 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