Government Largess, California Style: $800k Salary for Chief Administrative Officer
California is no stranger to government largess. The state government, as well as a large number of municipalities are on the verge of bankruptcy.
For any of us that are students of Austrian Economics...or who have just written a personal budget...it's no mystery how this situation came about: spending more than you have and driving away business leads to huge debt.
Over the last few decades, California has been pointed to as the poster-child for liberal policies. They have huge social programs, arts projects, unemployment and government subsidies of every kind. In spite of the fact that their taxes have been above the national average for a long time, they still haven't been able to support the terminal spending habit which has gripped their state government...but I digress...
Last week, the LA Times reported that Bell, CA Chief Administrative Officer Robert Rizzo earns nearly $800k per year. They also uncovered the fact that the Bell Police Chief earns over $450k and the City Council members earn almost $100k...for part-time work.
All this takes place in a city with $14.1 million in revenue (it declined by 4.6% last year) and rising expenses of $15.9 million.
The fact that the citizens of Bell, CA were outraged when they found out about this craziness doesn't surprise me but I do have to ask this question: Why did it take a national news paper to expose this? How did they not know about this a long time ago?
The sad fact is that few people pay attention to our city councils and municipal government. Folks assume that all the action takes place in Washington, DC or their state capitol. The Average Joe doesn't read local news or follow it.
If you don't know much about your city or municipal government I would encourage you to check out www.SunshineReview.org and see what you can find out about your city. Another great way is to start attending local School Board or City Council meetings and blog/tweet about them. By doing this as an individual or part of a group, you can add a previously non-existant layer of accountability to your government and protect your city from the kind of problems that Bell, CA is having now!!
It was the first council meeting since the Los Angeles Times reported July 15 that Chief Administrative Officer Robert Rizzo earns $787,637 -- with annual 12 percent raises -- and that Bell pays its police chief $457,000, more than Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck makes in a city of 3.8 million people. Bell council members earn almost $100,000 for part-time work.
Bell has sold two general obligation bond issues totaling $50 million in the past six years, according to prospectuses for the bonds and information in the city’s annual financial statement for 2009. In that time, its debt has risen to $1,972 per capita in 2009 from $599 in 2004, according to its annual financial statement.
Bell’s general fund revenue declined 4.6 percent to $14.1 million for the fiscal year that ended June 30, 2009, according to the city’s financial statement. The city’s expenses rose 2.3 percent to $15.9 million in same period.
Read more at www.bloomberg.com
