HAY PLAN: Calvo Defends Mayors & Vice Mayors, Public Auditor, AG, and Cabinet
Governor Calls on Senators to Return Pay Raise, Peg Their Salary to Performance As Well
Hafa Adai!
Thank you so much for voicing your support on the revised Hay Study, which will fund long-overdue raises to our government employees. Your actions have averted a major concern of the governor: that senators playing election year politics would use classified and unclassified employees as “collateral damage”.
Unfortunately, a bill introduced by Senator Mike San Nicolas would freeze increases for hardworking elected leaders like the Mayors, Vice Mayors, Attorney General, and Public Auditor. It would also tie the salary increases for these positions and more to performance benchmarks that have nothing to do with their duties, and statistics they cannot improve within their powers. For instance, the Attorney General would not receive an increase in salary unless standardized test scores have increased in public schools. The Public Auditor would not receive a salary increase unless Guam’s unemployment is lower than the national average.
Worse yet, the legislature’s recent pay raise, the only raise for elected leaders in 20 years, is not tied to this performance mandate. They can continue to set their salary as high as they want without improving your quality of life. This is a double standard. According to his bill:
“Senators of I Liheslatura…shall continue to receive their compensation as prescribed by §1106 of Chapter 1, Title 2, of the Guam Code Annotated;”
This is the law senators passed to give themselves a pay raise without the benefit of a public hearing or discussion. Senators’ raised salary was not proposed after any study or scientific method. They simply tied it to the salaries of judges. It’s sad that Senator San Nicolas would choose to insult Mayors and Vice Mayors with his bill while protecting his own salary.
Here are three important points to share with you about the Governor, Lt. Governor, and administration’s position on this measure:
1. The Governor isn’t even taking a pay increase, so we’re not sure what the big whoop is coming from Sen. San Nicolas. Senators can follow the Governor’s lead, if they’re so concerned, and give back the raise that senators got three years ago.
2. The Governor is completely opposed to lowering the proposed salaries for mayors, the Public Auditor, the Attorney General, and the Cabinet. All of these positions are highly underpaid. We challenge Sen. San Nicolas to spend one day undertaking the duties of a mayor by personally picking up animal carcasses off the road, taking calls from residents at 3 a.m. to help with flooding, directing traffic in front of schools, coordinating village athletic programs, feeding the elderly and the sick, and everything else they do daily. We challenge him to even begin to understand the complications of auditing, litigation, and prosecution under the restraint of underfunding by the same body he is part of. And we challenge him to see if he can succeed as the manager of even our smallest agency, considering that the senator has never been a manager and would not fathom the efforts of the directors, who stay on the front lines of service with their employees.
3. The Governor finds it ironic that the Legislature would peg every elected official’s salary increase to performance except themselves. This is especially ironic since the only elected officials who ever saw a pay raise in the last 20 years were senators, in December 2010. And they decided to keep that raise even when the Governor, Lieutenant Governor, their senior staff, and half the cabinet took a voluntary pay cut. That pay raise was not based on merit or performance at all; rather, it was based on the salary of judges. The Governor proposes an amendment to Sen. San Nicolas’ bill. This amendment calls for senators to be included in the senator’s proposed Performance Pay Plan. The amendment should delete the senatorial pay raise of December 2010, and provide that senators can get their pay raise back if they meet the requirements of the Performance Pay Plan.
Below is a list of just some cabinet and elected leaders who are affected by Sen. San Nicolas’ bill. This comparison clearly shows the inequity that exists, not just in the market, but also within the government itself. This inequity exists because autonomous agencies have been able to pay their employees competitive wages, while the Legislature has failed to provide the same opportunities to deserving line agency employees. The revised Hay Plan will correct this. We should note that we are pleased that the autonomous agencies are able to pay their deserving employees what they’re worth. Now it’s time to provide the same opportunities to their brothers and sisters in the line agencies.
The Chief of the Guam Fire Department has a salary of $74,096. This is well below the average of $90,000 that Captains in the fire department make with their base salary, overtime, and other financial benefits and incentives. The current chief answered the call to serve his people, even though it is more attractive for him to remain a lieutenant. He would make more money and have fewer responsibilities if he went back to the rank and file of the department. Instead, he’s taken a pay cut for the past two years so he could serve. With the implementation of the remaining law enforcement pay raise, a fire captain can make just under $100,000 in a year. We do not know if Fire Chief San Nicolas would want to serve with this disparity in pay, especially if it can be solved by stepping down from his leadership position. Your fire chief is also a citizen soldier, and just returned home form a tour in Afghanistan as member of the Guam National Guard.
The Director of Administration, who is in charge of human resources, procurement, treasury functions, cash management, accounting, and information technology for the line agencies of the government of Guam makes $88,915. This compares to:
- The Deputy Superintendent of Education for Finances: $110,000
- The Administrator of the Courts: $120,000
- The Operations Manager at the Port Authority of Guam: $105,652
- UOG’s Vice President of Administration and Finance: $129,637
- The Guam Community College Vice President of Finance and Administration: $99,694
- Guam Power Authority’s Chief Financial Officer: $119,454
- GPA’s Assistant Chief Financial Officer: $102,544
- The Guam Waterworks Authority’s Information Technology Manager: $98,379
- GPA’s Personnel Services Administrator: $93,600
The Director of the Guam Behavioral Wellness Center is charged with treating our most vulnerable and needy Guamanians. Their clients include those with mental illnesses and drug addictions. GBWC’s programs also prevent suicide and help treat behavioral issues in children. This position makes $75,208. This compares to:
- The Director of Guam CEDDERS: $166,872
- Guam CEDDERS Associate Director for Interdisciplinary Training, Operations, & Data/Dissemination: $99,053
- Guam CEDDERS Associate Director for Program Development, Technical Assistance & Outreach: $92,903
- Guam CEDDERS Training Associate: $90,447
- Guam CEDDERS Health, Wellness, & Prevention Initiative Area Coordinator: $90,447
- The court’s Client Services & Family Counseling Administrator: $84,427
The Director of Public Works has many duties and responsibilities over Guam’s roadways, buildings, buses, and businesses. This department oversees government maintenance; occupancy permits for private businesses; school bus operations; bus shelter management; engineering and design; highway maintenance, construction, and planning; and highway safety. This position has a salary of $88,915. This compares to:
- Port Authority of Guam’s Terminal Superintendent: $90,851
- PAG’s Transportation Superintendent: $91, 760
- PAG’s Maintenance Manager: $105,652
- PAG’s Engineer Manager: $102,545
- General Manager, Consolidated Utility Services: $159,993
- GPA’s General Manager: $153,004
- GPA’s Assistant General Manager (OPTN-CCU): $129,563
- GPA’s Environmental Manager: $93,766
- GPA’s Manager of Engineering: $112,340
- GPA’s Manager of Generation: $101,691
- GPA’s Manager of T&D: $100,526
- GWA’s Chief Engineer: $116,902
- GWA’s Senior Engineering Supervisor: $105,476
- GWA’s Assistant Chief Engineer: $91,004
The Chief of Police, who is tasked with the enormous and unenviable task of managing Guam’s crime problem, has a salary of $74,096. This compares to:
- The Port Police Chief: $84,739
- The Marshal of the Courts: $88,296
- The Deputy Chief Marshal: $80,538
The Director of the Agency for Human Resource Development, which helps all Guamanians gain meaningful employment and the skills needed to start a life-long career, has a salary of $60,850. This compares to:
- UOG’s Chief Human Resources Officer: $88,500
- The court’s Senior HR Management Officer: $71,531
The elected Attorney General oversees prosecution of criminal cases, defends the government against criminal and civil litigation, reviews government contracts, and ensures timely payments of child support. This position has a salary of $109,497. This compares to:
- UOG’s Legal Counsel: $122,056
- The Administrator of the Courts: $120,000
- The court’s Administrative Hearing Officer: $116,718
- GWA’s Staff Attorney: $111,042