Many years ago members of an electronics association where I served on the Board engaged in the practice of worldwide industry “benchmarking.” Our objective was to look at various industries around the globe as well as our competition to find effective tools to improve our process and raise the bar of our performance and bottom line.
From the Internet it reads: “Benchmarking is the process of determining who is the very best, who sets the standard, and what that standard is.”
Today’s Register report of city manager wages in Aliso Viejo is a dangerous example of the downside to taxpayers of comparing one city’s compensation benchmarked with another. In fact two months ago the Register had a similar report that pointed out the total compensation of Laguna Hills City Manager Bruce Channing, the highest in Orange County, at $460,809, that resulted in a debate on the accuracy of the data. They reported his base salary of $233,592. the Register reports an average city manager package at $281,281.
Most South County cities contract out services. As a result the city of Laguna Hills has only 27 full time equivalent employees, known as FTE’s.
I just contacted the city clerk of Aliso Viejo as a follow up to today’s Register and was told that they have 14 FTE’s. However that 10 square mile city of 46,123 residents has just rewarded their city manager raising his salary to around $190,000.
Let’s now look at the governor of CA. with approximately 34-36 million residents living in 164,000 square miles. Arnold reportedly has 154 people working directly for him as he governs, or tries to govern this state where his 2007 salary is listed at $206,500. Note: He does not accept any salary.
TX governor Rick Perry has 267 staff members yet his salary is only $150,000.
There are over 25 million people living in the state of Texas.
My point is that it is a cop out for local city council members to benchmark their staff benefit packages with other cities to justify excessive compensation no matter how efficient the city manager. According to the Aliso Viejo City Clerk she told me their city budget is $34 million dollars while our state budget, ultimately under his gubernatorial leadership hovers between $80 billion to over $100 billion dollars.
So if you continue to compare city manager compensation packages let me suggest looking at equal staffing, duties and responsibilities in the private sector. Don’t try to convince us that we are below the top packages in Orange County to make us feel any better about your failure to engage in due diligence as you spend our money.
Bottom line. Sorry Phil (Mayor Tsunada). There is no way anyone can justify that Aliso Viejo City Manager Mark Pulone should earn $190,000 in wages when there are only 14 FTE’s in that small city.
This is not personal. Phil and I have had some productive discussions when I visited with him at Chris Norby’s BOS office.
Let’s hope they don’t start comparing salaries to Bell, CA where the City Manager makes $787,000 and the part-time councilmen make $100,000.
Rick.
We must keep the $100,000 council salaries our secret. If you recall Frank Ury once proposed changing from a General Law to a Charter City form of government. That’s the precursor of a full time council and corresponding $100,000 salaries. Anaheim, Irvine and Santa Ana operate as Charter cities.
Good article. This is how it begins and up the sharks keep up the feeding frenzy. City Manager’s gather information about what other CM’s get paid + benefits. They rarely if ever compare themselves to a full service city vs a contract city without their own police and fire.
Afterall they just want the councils to compare money not work. It is time for people (councils and employees) to start comparing like job to like job. Granted there may not be CM’s in the real world, but for sure there are jobs that are comparable that supervise a like number of employees. For years we have all heard about their ‘call to public service’. Its time to get down to basics and ask themselves whereelse can they get these six figure jobs, with perks, benefits and practically no way of being laid off or fired.
The real world is suffering, yet reality still has not touched CM’s.
Vicious cycle, (1) city managers and staff launder money and over priced projects to developers and well connected people and groups. (2) the well connected make campaign donations, form independent PAC’s and hire in do nothing jobs, out of work city staffers and out of office politicians. (3) the elected member of the cities approved the excessive pay and benefits of city managements and enervative staffs.
Term limits has only made the systems worst.
There is an analogy with the police departments that negotiate deals to ensure a minimum salary rank in the County. That means that when some cops below them in another city leapfrog them, they automatically leapfrog right back in front. I believe the City Council in garden grove agreed to this idiocy a few years back.
Those who vote, who generally are a minority of registered voters because most voters seem apathetic, elect people to make these pay level (and many other important) decisions. Seems to me we get what we vote (or don’t vote) for. Whining about the result accomplishes little. If significant numbers of voters are truly concerned, they can change things if they will take the time to be active in local politics, including voting. Otherwise, pass the cheese.
BAW. We agree.
Sadly most voters do not take the time to review minor details such as the Bell city manager getting $787,000 per year. You can live, work, and play in that city that is 2 1/2 square miles. That’s not even a 10K (for those who jog or run).
As much as people want to complain about public employee salaries, City Managers are not elected officials and talking about voters and their pay is ridiculous.
They actually have to have verifiable experience, resumes, etc., they don’t campaign, they interview, etc. So it’s totally different.
Are they overpaid, yes. But it’s still apples and oranges. And trying to compare cities merely by population and square miles is simplistic. What about by their budget? What about how fast they are growing and the number of businesses in their area? There are a lot of different benchmarks to measure a city and how complex it is to manage.
Aliso Viejo is a growing young city with business’s moving in, etc. This seems like a piece that just wants to blindly attack without really thinking it through.
Not the same.
You are missing my point. This is a game. Thanks? to the Register for exposing everyone’s compensation package and all of those on the lower wage rungs will justify requesting higher packages by comparing themselves to their peers.
No, they don’t campaign. They focus on “counting to three.” In any city with a five member council that’s all they need to keep their jobs and they go overboard making sure that the council members stay in their camp. At one of our city council meetings a former city manager openly stated that he only had to count to three. Amazing candor, but honest.
I actually embarrased a prior city manager to pull an Agenda item where his annual review was being discussed. I did some homework and discovered that the governor had taken a pay cut that year. In my testimony I listed all of the thousands of staff and others whom ultimately are the responsibility of the governor.
Feel free to contact Fred Sorsabal to verify what I have stated just now is true.
Thinking it through? I am not attacking the people of Aliso Viejo. It is a fine newer south county city that we patronize. Ask the mayor if he and I have not met at Supervisor Norby’s office where we had very cordial exchanges. This is not a personal attack. It’s an effort to expose the flawed method of city manager compensation. Fourteen full time equivalent employees and you are paid more than the governor of Texas? Perhaps Rick Perry is underpaid. You should send him, and all other governors a copy of this post.
Folks.
We just had dinner with friends who left Aliso Viejo four years ago. In our conversation they mentioned the city manager in Bell earning almost $800,000 a year. They were not aware of their former city manager getting $190,000 with a staff of 14 FTE’s.
My point ia that everyone does not monitor local politics. We need to apply pressure on the members of our city councils to point out the flaws in compensation of our city managers.
You have to look outside the small box of sister cities to see what they are paying their managers. That is not how you establish a fair package.
Good stuff Larry; Thanks for your articles. Yes, sadly a lot of voters do not take a newspaper (Dave Leckness for one) Don’t watch council meetings on tv (ditto) Do not go to council meetings or do any reasearch (ditto) once they are on council, many do not read their full packets before the meetings (ditto). Do not ask questions of staff, and actually expect and read answers should they comply.
People don’t need college degrees to be in office, perhaps activists who have spent years involved in their city processes and asking questions are the most qualified. The first time I ran and won, the then CM asked me into his office after the election and explained things to me. He said “I only have to count to three, and you are not it”.
After 15,000 votes, and $35,000 that was a real bubble burster. When he was replaced with our current CM, there was no interview, there was no challenge to his being advanced. there is a bigger story, but I would be sued by the city if I were to discuss it.
What we got in MV was another bureaucrat (with a history), and only three people to direct his work. (If he is smart, which most CM’s are), they have learned how to placate and control a majority on the council. MV has long been accused of being dysfunctional.
Look at the fact that the same law firm and same management is still running things. Like any good divorce attorney who wants to own the house of his clients, his best avenue is one that keeps the parties stirred up and at each others throats.
Just an observation.
I live in Aliso Viejo , Phil wasn’t even elected, he was appointed?!? We have two members of our council that were appointed, or annoited, giving someone an unfair advange on our city council She just voted in her 3. Hows that for discusting politics. We’ve only been a city for 10 years and Carmens been mayor for about 3 or 4 times now. lol Poor Ficke, who got more votes than anyone else has never had the chance to be mayor.
You did hit on something though, How does someone with no background whatsoever (other than running for office,) manage to get a job as Director of Community services for the CIty of Menifee.?!? Unbelieveable, and the sad part is, you are so right, no body gives a da_ _.
Aliso Viejo Minion.
Having two members of your city council be appointed to office does raise questions.
When Mission Viejo’s Tom Potocki died in office the majority appointed Roger Faubel to take his place. When Roger ran for election on his own in Nov 2000 he spent around $80,000 and lost to challenger Gail Reavis whom I think spent less than half that amount.
My point is that while city councils have the option of calling for a “special election” to replace these members there may have been a calendar issue which forced the appointment or simply a cop out to avoid the election cost.
Did anyone oppose these appointments? Therein may be the answer. We must be vigilant 24/7 if we hope to keep them on their toes. It takes a commitment which is easier dealt with if you can share the effort with other residents who share the same concerns.
As to Phil. He and I have had friendly exchanges when I visited Supervisor Norby’s Santa Ana BOS office. Note: This proves that I can interact with Democrats.