A lobbyist and former state lawmaker said he is reconsidering his new job as legislative liaison to the City Council after several of its members grilled him yesterday about the way he was hired.

Alex Santiago, a Democrat who represented the North Shore in the state House from 1990 to 2000, said he felt caught in a political tug-of-war between council factions.

"I'm having second thoughts, if this is what I'm going to be faced with over the next year," Santiago said.

He said he was "trying my best to serve a council that is horribly divided and dysfunctional."

Council Chairwoman Barbara Marshall approved a $49,999 one-year contract with Santiago in June, and announced the decision in an e-mail. A majority of the council's members approved of the deal, and Marshall has maintained that it was handled properly.

But others who have been feuding with Marshall over other matters have aggressively questioned the arrangement because it was not discussed publicly in advance, and fell one cent under a threshold that would require competitive bidding.

Councilman Charles Djou said he did not believe Santiago's position was necessary since five of the council's nine members are former state lawmakers. But Djou agreed with Santiago's assessment of council infighting.

"In five years on the council, I have never seen the council as bitterly divided as it is now," Djou said.

Santiago, who represents healthcare and social service industry associations as a lobbyist before the Legislature, said he would ask the state Ethics Commission to determine if that work creates a conflict of interest that should preclude him from working for the council.