After years of criticisms about corruption and the lack of transparency in Albany, state legislators’ outside income, investments and debts were made available online for the first time ever in accordance with the Public Integrity Reform Act of 2011. These disclosures exposed many interesting details about Bronx lawmakers, including the fact that some have earned money through gambling and movie roles.

State lawmakers receive a base pay of $79,000 a year, according to a report by the 2012 National Conference of State Legislatures, making them some of the best paid lawmakers in the nation. However, most of them work outside jobs.

The most intriguing revelation, by far, was South Bronx Assemblywoman Carmen Arroyo claiming she earned close to $30,000 in gambling this year. Arroyo did not report any outside income when initial documents were due, but added the information in an amendment a month later.

While she has yet to return our calls, Arroyo released an undated photo to the Daily News of herself and three friends standing next to a winning slot machine at the Saratoga Casino and Raceway in an attempt to counter the many questions about her disclosure.

Arroyo would not say when in 2012 the jackpot was won, nor would she say what her plans are for the unexpected income. Arroyo, whose nephew was convicted of stealing money from a nonprofit she was connected to, was long suspected of — but never indicted or charged with — any wrongdoing.

Unlike Arroyo, several Bronx lawmakers earned their money through other jobs. The financial disclosures revealed that many are adjunct professors at community colleges, including Senator Gustavo Rivera, Assemblyman Carl Heastie, Assemblyman Luis Sepulveda, and Senator Jeff Klein. Each earned anywhere from $1,000 to $20,000 for their teaching gigs.

Many Bronx pols also practice law, including Klein, Sepulveda and Assemblyman Jeff Dinowitz. Klein said he made up to $85,000 on legal work, Sepulveda up to $75,000 and Dinowitz up to $50,000.

The newly elected Mark Gjonaj, who fought against being labeled an unscrupulous landlord during his successful campaign against Assemblyman Naomi Rivera last year, is the wealthiest Bronx legislator, according to the disclosure reports.

Gjonaj claimed he made between $10,000 and $40,000 last year from his property management businesses. But the freshman assembly member’s primary source of wealth lies in his real estate holdings. Gjonaj listed three pieces of property on his disclosure form, one in the Bronx and two in Yonkers. The property in the Bronx is valued between $500,000 and $750,000, while the two Yonkers properties are each valued at more than $1 million.

Gjonaj said those pieces of land remain vacant, but he’s hoping to develop them in the near future when the market picks up. He said his family owns several Bronx rental properties, but that he is not a landlord himself.

“Being newly elected, it wasn’t surprising that I had to disclose my finances,” Gjonaj said, in a phone interview. “But I think to many of my colleagues who have been in office for a while, it was a little surprising.”

Senator Ruben Diaz Sr., who is a pastor at the Christian Community Neighborhood Church, disclosed that he receives birthday gifts from the church, but filed their value at $0. Diaz Sr. also receives a stipend from the CCBA church, worth up to $20,000.

Several lawmakers committed errors on their financial disclosures. Assemblyman Michael Benedetto directs readers to “see attached document” for information on his interests in trust and estate. However, there is no attached document.

Assemblyman Marcos Crespo seems to have confused the name of his wife’s beauty salon. In his statements, he listed himself as the sole proprietor of Virna Lisy Salon, which is his wife’s name. While this salon does not seem to exist, his wife runs a salon named Virginia’s Beauty Salon.

The only elected official in the entertainment business, at least nominally, is Dinowitz, who says he is still getting paid somewhere between $1 and $1,000 a year for his minor acting role in the 2002 Jennifer Lopez film, “Maid in Manhattan.” He played a politician.

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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.