30 replies to this topic

[Dave Burrell]

After hearing about the crooked leadership in the City of Bell ripping off their citizens with insanely high wages, today I now read about very high salaries in the city of Lincoln too (higher then a senator's salary!) - which leads me to ask, how much are our city's leaders salaries?

Robert G's post got me really thinking about the need to monitor what our politicians are doing more closely so we don't end up screwed like the City of Bell.

When does it end? ...when these crooks get a million dollar a year pension?

I'm guessing (hoping) Folsom is not in the same category with sky high salaries but I have no idea... I tried searching for info online but could not find any salary information listed, other then some city employee salaries from 2008

Read on.....

Lincoln city-manager salary extreme I continue to be amazed of the salaries being paid to support the Lincoln city manager position.

Earning over $200,000 annually at taxpayer expense is astonishing to say the least, especially for a small (but great) city like Lincoln.

Consider, a U.S. senator makes $175,000 annually. Until the most recent minor pay cut taken by the city manager, a United States Supreme Court justice made less than the Lincoln city manager. The average salary for a state governor is about $125,000.


Full article HERE


Here's another one in Rocklin (below) - come on! this is political corruption at it's finest - when will the greed end?

City answers critics of pay spike Watchdog group says council ‘duped’ over manager Urrutia’s pay
City of Rocklin officials are trying to stamp out controversy sparked by the recent report of the 42-percent increase in City Manager Carlos Urrutia’s salary over the last five years, prior to his retirement.

A local watchdog group calls it “pension spiking,” and says it’s unethical.


Full article HERE

[SacKen]

We need to get back to these jobs being a civic duty and not something you get rich on and retire with a six figure income. I was metaphorically serious when I commented in another thread about the need for mobs with torches and ax-handles to make a comeback. We have allowed all government, from local to federal, to get way out of hand. Government is no longer a civic entity, it is a for-profit industry with no rules and "customers" that they can squeeze all the funds out of that they can imagine with very little repercussion.

[Bill Z]

After hearing about the crooked leadership in the City of Bell ripping off their citizens with insanely high wages, today I now read about very high salaries in the city of Lincoln too (higher then a senator's salary!) - which leads me to ask, how much are our city's leaders salaries?

googling I found this, and this is back in 2007

MyFolsom Website
If you scroll down to the Sep 2007 entry, you will find this:

$15K Raise For City Manager

Folsom City Manager Kerry Miller was unanimously granted a 7.9% pay raise from Folsom City Council on Tuesday. Already making $195,500, the raise equates to about a $211,000 a year. 80 hours of administrative leave per year were also amended to his contract.
Labels: Folsom City Council, Kerry Miller

posted September 27, 2007

I don't know if he's had more raises like this or paycuts or pay freezes since then, maybe Kerri Howell would like to comment.

[Robert Giacometti]

When the previous City manager was hired , they had ZERO experience and was the HIGHEST paid city manager in the region according to an article by the SAC BEE. Again, highest paid DESPITE having no experience.

When they left, they were given a NO BID consulting posistion that paid some obscence amount, again despite never doing anything like that.

I went to the Council meeting to express my concerns about the NO BID consulting contract and recieved numerous calls of thanks from many employees at city over my willingness to speak out on this farce!

I guess that is the reward one gets from this council when one negotiates a deal for surplus land to our council members developer buddy for 1/3 of its value.

I know some have been asking me who got paid off in return for trying to keep this deal quiet, but I won't go there.

Dave, my friend what you are concerend about is happening right in front of your face, you just have to get beyond personalities to see it.


Its time we get together for lunch, my treat!

[Dave Burrell]

When the previous City manager was hired , they had ZERO experience and was the HIGHEST paid city manager in the region according to an article by the SAC BEE. Again, highest paid DESPITE having no experience.

When they left, they were given a NO BID consulting posistion that paid some obscence amount, again despite never doing anything like that.

I went to the Council meeting to express my concerns about the NO BID consulting contract and recieved numerous calls of thanks from many employees at city over my willingness to speak out on this farce!

I guess that is the reward one gets from this council when one negotiates a deal for surplus land to our council members developer buddy for 1/3 of its value.

I know some have been asking me who got paid off in return for trying to keep this deal quiet, but I won't go there.

Dave, my friend what you are concerend about is happening right in front of your face, you just have to get beyond personalities to see it.


Its time we get together for lunch, my treat!

PM sent

[MikeinFolsom]

Market value. I don't think our city pays anyone an outlandish salary. If you're willing to cut their pay by 50%, have at it, but I have the feeling any amount will never be enough. Robert G has a pretty big flapper, why doesn't he attempt to gain employment with the city and effect change from within? Why not run for council? I too know it is much easier to sit on the sidelines and lob hand grenades. As a matter of fact, instead of making what you make from your employer, I challenge you to walk into your supervisor's office tomorrow and offer a 10% pay reduction. Just because. Doubt you will, so quit saying other people need to.

[Bill Z]

Market value. I don't think our city pays anyone an outlandish salary. If you're willing to cut their pay by 50%, have at it, but I have the feeling any amount will never be enough. Robert G has a pretty big flapper, why doesn't he attempt to gain employment with the city and effect change from within? Why not run for council? I too know it is much easier to sit on the sidelines and lob hand grenades. As a matter of fact, instead of making what you make from your employer, I challenge you to walk into your supervisor's office tomorrow and offer a 10% pay reduction. Just because. Doubt you will, so quit saying other people need to.

Well, as I posted, our city manager does make more than the state governor and state assemblyman and state senators.
Now whether he is worth that or not is another story.

And I think if you go around and look at some of those bronze signs in some of our city parks, you will discover that Robert has worked for the city in the past, so your attack upon him as if he is some know nothing do nothing yapper flapper is kinda incorrect. I know I don't have my name cast in bronze anywhere, do you? The closest I come is having a voter's pamphlet showing I did run for public office once, do you have that?

[MikeinFolsom]

My name on a ballot because I paid the $5 filing fee? Can't say I do. And so like many of your other intelligent posts......looks like you got me there!!!!!

I think what people miss on the forums is the fact that it is okay to have compassion for the next guy. Yes, the Bell City employees did something wrong. Criminally wrong. Hopefully they'll be prosecuted for it. Wall Street execs did the WHOLE country wrong. What they did is affecting each and every one of us, and the hurting isn't going to stop for a while. But just because your profession was in a field that was affected more than your neighbor's, does that mean your neighbor is wrong for picking that employment field?

Three years ago I was making 50% more than I currently am. Things are significantly tighter now than they were in the "good ol' days". None of my monthly bills or required payments went down 50%. A couple of my friends who are physicians are still rolling in the dough. They chose to attend the longer schooling. Put their time in. And now it is paying off. Do I think they are overpaid? They need to take a pay cut? Am I mad one neighbor just purchased a new Maserati? Heck yes I'm mad.......why did I take the easy way out and choose a different career field? Hindsight is 20/20.

Folsom employees as well as most of their surrounding counterparts are making fair market value for their chosen field. Yes, here and there you will see a blip on the screen that will make you scratch your head. I really have a hard time believing that a Bell City incident could happen in Folsom because of the community involvement. That is what makes Folsom a pretty decent place to live. As I have said before, all contracts, salaries, etc. for Folsom employees can be found on the web. Wondering what the Fire guys make? You can find that too. Heck, you can even find copies of their MOUs pretty easily. Police as well. I know it's easy to be envious of the attorney or physician or whomever might live next to you. If what they have bothers you........upgrade yourself. Go from version 1.0 to 2.0. Sounds geeky, I know....but I have never professed to be a computer engineer type.

[Bill Z]

My name on a ballot because I paid the $5 filing fee? Can't say I do. And so like many of your other intelligent posts......looks like you got me there!!!!!

It was more than a $5 filing fee, believe me. And as I didn't want to swing the entire $3000 or so filing fee it was about 8 weeks of gathering signatures in lieu of filing fees driving from registered Libertarian to Registered Libertarian in what was then Congressional District 4. I spent about 2 hours each night driving around Folsom, Fair Oaks, Orangevale, El Dorado Hills, & Placerville. Then there was the campaigning, I drove as far away as Markeeville, Sonora and Twain Harte to get my message out. So please don't belittle my efforts getting my name on a ballot. It was a lot more work than you imagine.

[Redone]

All credibilty was lost with "My name on a ballot because I paid the $5 filing fee?"

You need to learn more about what things cost.

[Kerri Howell]

googling I found this, and this is back in 2007

MyFolsom Website
If you scroll down to the Sep 2007 entry, you will find this:


I don't know if he's had more raises like this or paycuts or pay freezes since then, maybe Kerri Howell would like to comment.

He has not. Freezes and furlough days.

[SacKen]

... fair market value ...

How do you define this over-used and abused term? I agree that we should pay a "fair market value". As in, the lowest price that someone "we" believe to be competent and capable is willing to be paid to do the job. Unfortunately, the term is typically abused by those that want to keep getting paid the big bucks to mean "comparable to others that do the same job".

Oh, and if my memory serves me correctly, I believe Robert did actively run for city council. At least twice that I know of.

[Robert Giacometti]

Robert G has a pretty big flapper, why doesn't he attempt to gain employment with the city and effect change from within? Why not run for council? I too know it is much easier to sit on the sidelines and lob hand grenades.

I've never been bashful about expressing my opinions about things and probably won't change now. You might recall, I was using my flapper as the ONLY resident in the community to stand before the council arguing against giving away that NO BID contract for the "Bridge Consultant" position, to the former city manager, trying to save all of us money. You know what a farce that was and it was YOUR TAX dollars getting wasted, yet no one else but me got off the sidelines to say so!

I suspect you are mad at me for talking about enhancing the employee pension benefits 7 years ago? The reality is the enhanced pension plans aren't realistic or sustainable and it needs to be addressed or more employees will get layed off, with more furloughs and reduced services for residents. This is a loose/loose situtaion for all of us. I want to avoid that for everyone.

I ran for the City council 6 years ago and warned against some of the very things that are happening today. I pulled the papers to run again this time, but after thinking it through thought I could best effect change by using my flapper as a non candidate talking about issues, so people wouldn't discount me as some politician making noise trying to get elected.

Wanna help yourself or cause? You are on the inside at City Hall, ask around and find out if the Staff at City Hall feel that the amount the Land Owners S50 have reimbursed city hall for all the planning and preparation for S50 is accurate? We already know it isn't! That amount that isn't being reimbursed and going into the Land owners pockets, that is what your furlough days are paying for.

We are all in this together Mike. If you stop and think about it, my flapper is on your side!

[MikeinFolsom]

Robert, my problem is with the notion that we all think it is the public employee's fault we are in the situation we're currently facing. The garbage truck driver, park maintenance worker, police officer, and fireman aren't the reason we gave the 'bridge consultant' a no bid contract. They aren't the reason why PERS was changed to 3% @ 50. They aren't the reason why the CITY chose to spend $16 million and counting on a NOT NEEDED taj mahal library. Of course they want the best compensation and benefits they can obtain. Who doesn't? You're telling me that if you could get better benefits, retirement, etc. from your employer, or could maximize your profits and margins to a greater extent, you wouldn't?

You seem hung up on the public retirement system. I am quite sure that by now you have researched the issue quite extensively. The problem with PERS is, during the 'booming times' the city and ALL governing bodies of CA were urged to contribute a 'suggested payment' into PERS. With the returns PERS was realizing in the markets, cities only had to pay little to none into the fund. So they didn't, just like Folsom. Instead of putting this money away, our fearless leaders spent that money on OTHER pet projects. Now that PERS has taken a hit in the markets just like you and I, the city is scrambling because now they DO have to make the required payments. So the way I see it, PERS was good for the city when they didn't have to pay, now it is a troubling burden because they do have to make the payment? Easy to find the scapegoat in that one.

I am a conservative at heart. I do think you are right on in most of your issues you post on this board. I think your aiming system is a little off on who is actually responsible for the mess we're in. Some blame the 'unions'. I'm sure you've seen by now that with this and previous city councils, once they decide on an issue, unions, the public opinion, or anything else for that matter, isn't going to change anything.

I hope this restores my credibility with some on this forum, I'd hate to lose sleep over it.

[knowfolsom]

Here's a list from the city's website of all the salaries for the top of the chain at the city in 2009-2010. However that is just their salary, that does no include their benefits.

I did find an old budget from the Police department on their city web page that showed the Police Chief's benefits back in 2006-2007. His salary was $157,000.00. His benefits not including salary was $112,698.00. His salary has since gone up $30,000 alone in the last four years, so I imagine his benefits are probably higher than $112,000. Even if they were the same that would put the Police Chief at $299,000.00 a year in salary and benefits. I can estimate that it is probably the same for the fire chief, city attorney and the rest.

I checked other departments but could not find anything on their individual budgets like the police department had.

Some real quick math shows that these 13 people take about 2 million just in salary, so if you throw in benefits, base on what the chief of police's benefits are, I would estimate that these top 13 people for Folsom make over 3 million.



Assistant City Attorney $120,000.00
Redevelopment and Housing Director $135,605.76
Director of Governmental Affairs
and Economic Development $137,039.67
Parks and Recreation Director $139,529.52
Human Resource Director $146,598.12
Community Development Director $147,794.04
Public Works Director $148,054.68
Utilities Director $152,523.48
Assistant City Manager/
Admin Services Director $166,154.16
Fire Chief $170,278.56
Police Chief $187,693.20
City Attorney $197,134.56
City Manager $212,023.56

http://www.folsom.ca...bID=12133#page=

page VI-8

Position Information
FY FY Salary
Position 2005-06 2006-07 Estimate Benefit Total
Police Administration
Police Chief 1 1 $157,320 $112,698 $270,018


http://www.folsom.ca...asp?BlobID=4097

Page 16

It's not as high as those schmucks in Bell, but it seems too high for me. Let's clean house and put some money back towards the community.