Should O.C. managers be paid over four times the median household income?

Something stinks over at the O.C. Sanitation District. “The Orange County Sanitation District’s general manager has been awarded a raise that will bring his total compensation to nearly $290,000 in the coming year and make him one of the most highly paid government executives in Orange County,” according to the L.A. Times.

Is this one of the reasons why the O.C. Sanitation District’s Board of Directors recently raised our sanitation rates by 13%?
Here are the poopy details, from the L.A. Times:
The compensation package for James Ruth — which includes a performance bonus, deferred compensation and reimbursement for out-of-pocket medical expenses — was so hefty that some members of the sanitation district’s board of directors voted Wednesday night to oppose it, resulting in a rare split vote on a top government manager’s pay.

Board members, including those who opposed the package, said Ruth has done an excellent job managing the district, which has undergone a major overhaul and launched a world-renowned system to treat wastewater and eventually make it fit for human consumption again.

But the opposing board members also said they thought the percentage increase of the raise was too large, the bonus was inappropriate for a government manager and noted that the district recently imposed a 13% fee hike on its customers to pay for increased operating costs.

Ruth’s new annual base salary is $225,000 — up from nearly $210,000. But it is still below that of Orange County’s other two top government managers, Executive Officer Thomas G. Mauk and Arthur T. Leahy, chief executive of the Orange County Transportation Authority. In June, Leahy received a raise to $266,656 a year. Mauk’s pay was set last year at $253,562.

But with a $14,700 bonus, $20,500 in deferred pay and up to $3,500 in reimbursement for medical expenses, plus the cost of other benefits, Ruth’s total compensation is $289,364, according to staff documents provided to the board.

Leahy’s total compensation, which includes categories similar to Ruth, is about $332,200.

So what did Jim Ruth have to say about all this?  He had no comment.  He was on vacation.  That figures.  I would be celebrating too if I just got a raise of over $40,000!  According to the O.C. Register, “That’s a 17.6 percent increase from what he has been making (including all the extras, such as benefits and a merit bonus).”

Should O.C. public managers be paid CEO money to do their jobs?  I don’t think so.  I don’t care what other agencies are paying their people.  We should draw the line here in Orange County.  These levels of pay are simply disgusting.

How about a cap on all public employees in Orange County, wherein they could not make more than three times the median household income here in Orange County, which is $65,953?  That would “limit” them to $197,859.  That is still a chunk of change, but it is better than paying them over $300,000!  Right now they are making over four times the median household income!

Would limiting the pay of these overpaid public servants prevent us from hiring good managers?  I doubt it.  Why not find out?  Paying these folks over $300,000 each while so many people in our county are suffering is just criminal – particularly when we are being forced to pay higher rates in part to underwrite these ridiculous incomes.

Kudos to the few directors who voted no on Ruth’s ridiculous raise, including Supervisor Chris Norby.

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"Admin" is just editors Vern Nelson, Greg Diamond, or Ryan Cantor sharing something that they mostly didn't write themselves, but think you should see. Before December 2010, "Admin" may have been former blog owner Art Pedroza.