Moore: Muksian’s Outrageous Severance Package
Russell Moore GoLocal MINDSETTER™
Moore: Muksian’s Outrageous Severance Package
The rest of us can go pound sand, as far as the elites are concerned.
That’s was my reaction after reading GoLocal’s reporting, last weekend, on the massive severance package the city administration paid former Chief Operating Officer Robin Muksian.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTOn March 28, Mayor Jorge Elorza’s office announced that Muksian would resigned from the city. This announcement followed a GoLocal report that Muksian had pushed for an unqualified candidate to become the administrator to the Providence Board of Licenses, whose family just so happened to have a personal relationship as well as a prior business relationship with Muksian.
Big Bucks
Yet despite leaving the job supposedly through her own volition and under less than honorable circumstances, Elorza still saw fit to hand Muksian a $34,000 golden parachute--paid for by all of us--(even if you’re not from Providence, realize that about half of the city’s budget comes from state aid). Keep in mind: this woman only worked for the city since last August! Imagine how much of our money the mayor would have handed her if she worked for the city for two whole years? I do not even want to imagine.
According to data listed on the state’s Department of Labor and Training Website, the median income in the City of Providence is $22,270.
To add insult to injury, the administration approved the massive severance package without city council approval, which the City Treasurer, in a scathing letter to the city council, argued violates the city charter.
“It was a payment for $34,215 with an amount deemed "severance" for $19,692 (attached). I immediately emailed the Controller's office to reverse the $19,692 severance portion of the payment and they stated that the Law Department opined it was proper,” wrote City Treasurer Jim Lombardi. “They refused to separate the payment. Unfortunately, this is a complete breakdown of the checks and balances authorized by the City Charter. “
Insult to Injury
Even if the severance was somehow legal without council approval, and that’s very much an open question, how does the mayor explain to Providence taxpayers that he decided to spend their money on a very generous severance package for an employee who wasn’t laid off, or even fired, but quit the job. Are there any other places in Rhode Island where this is even imaginable?
On top of all this, it’s not like Providence is on safe financial footing. On the contrary, the city is drowning in red ink, with total liabilities (made up mostly of pension and health care obligations for current and future retirees) nearing $2 billion.
My hope is that one day, (for I doubt I will see it in my lifetime), perhaps 100 years from now, children will read the history books about our state and instances like this or former Representative Donald Lally’s hiring by the Raimondo administration (against the spirit of revolving door statutes) and teachers will be able to tell the students that civic-minded reformers emerged and put a stop to all of the corruption that plagued Rhode Island in the beginning portion of the 21st century. I hope so.
But I’m not optimistic.
City and Town Retiree Benefits Liabilities
Bristol Warren Schools
Total Liability: $22,072,077
Unfunded Liability: $22,072,077
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/2013
Burrillville
Total Liability: $2,510,127
Unfunded Liability: $2,510,127
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Central Falls
Total Liability: $12,000,546
Unfunded Liability: $12,000,546
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 6/30/13
Chariho Schools
Total Liability: $1,472,182
Unfunded Liability: $1,472,182
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Coventry
Total Liability: $12,523,000
Unfunded Liability: $12,523,000
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Cranston Schools
Total Liability: $26,287,884
Unfunded Liability: $26,287,884
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 6/30/11
Cumberland
Total Liability: $39,386,221
Unfunded Liability: $39,386,221
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
East Greenwich
Total Liability: $11,544,931
Unfunded Liability: $11,544,931
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/10
East Greenwich Schools
Total Liability: $4,110,870
Unfunded Liability: $4,110,870
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/10
East Providence City
Total Liability: $76,217,756
Unfunded Liability: $76,217,756
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 11/1/10
East Providence Schools
Total Liability: $28,331,194
Unfunded Liability: $28, 331,194
% Funded: 0.00
Valuation date: 11/1/10
Exeter W. Greenwhich Schools
Total Liability: $3,999,389
Unfunded Liability: $3,999,389
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Foster
Total Liability: $780,502
Unfunded Liability: $780, 502
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/09
Foster Glocester Schools
Total Liability: $3,015,744
Unfunded Liability: $3,015,744
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Glocester
Total Liability: $2,104,978
Unfunded Liability: $2,104,978
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Jamestown Schools
Total Liability: $6,496,005
Unfunded Liability: $6,496,005
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Jamestown
Total Liability: $3,482,971
Unfunded Liability: $3,482,971
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Johnston
Total Liability: $199,586,608
Unfunded Liability: $199,586,608
% Funded: 0.00 %
Valuation Date: 7/1/13
Little Compton
Total Liability: $2,788,371
Unfunded Liability: $2,788,371
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/13
Narragansett
Total Liability: $71,347,783
Unfunded Liability: $71,347,783
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
North Kingstown
Total Liability: $36,223,703
Unfunded Liability: $36,223,703
% Funded: 0.00 %
Valuation Date: 7/1/10
North Providence
Total Liability: $66,227,000
Unfunded Liability: $66,227,000
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
North Smithfield
Total Liability: $7,141,640
Unfunded Liability: $7,141,640
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/13
Pawtucket
Total Liability: $309,654,353
Unfunded Liability:$309,654,353
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/13
Portsmouth Schools
Total Liability: $7,207,872
Unfunded Liability: $7,207,872
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Providence
Total Liability: $1,149,115,000
Unfunded Liability: $1,149,115,000
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Scituate
Total Liability: $3,977,363
Unfunded Liability: $3,977,363
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 4/1/12
Tiverton
Total Liability: $24,492,216
Unfunded Liability: $24,492,216
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Warwick
Total Liability: $223,593,412
Unfunded Liability: $223,593,412
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Warwick Schools
Total Liability: $37,833,649
Unfunded Liability: $37,833,649
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
West Warwick
Total Liability: $57,953,063
Unfunded Liability: $57,953,063
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/13
Westerly Schools
Total Liability: $974,441
Unfunded Liability: $974,441
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Woonsocket
Total Liability: $157,305,211
Unfunded Liability: $157,305,211
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Woonsocket Schools
Total Liability: $59,447,193
Unfunded Liability: $59,447,193
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
New Shoreham
Total Liability: $1,643,452
Unfunded Liability: $1,643,452
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: NA
West Greenwich
Total Liability: $73,250
Unfunded Liability: $73,250
% Funded: 0.00%
Valuation Date: NA
Cranston
Total Liability: $63,353,593
Unfunded Liability: $63,098,440
% Funded: 0.40%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Lincoln
Total Liability: $15,778,660
Unfunded Liability: $15,498,655
% Funded: 1.80%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Portsmouth
Total Liability: $13,090,922
Unfunded Liability: $12,688,743
% Funded: 3.10%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Smithfield
Total Liability: $24,768,046
Unfunded Liability: $23,790,579
% Funded: 3.90%
Valuation Date: 6/30/13
South Kingstown
Total Liability: $19,260,000
Unfunded Liability: $17,610,000
% Funded: 8.60%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Middletown
Total Liability: $33,178,340
Unfunded Liability: $29,160,190
% Funded: 12.10%
Valuation Date: 6/30/13
Barrington Schools
Total Liability: $19,496,370
Unfunded Liability: $16,971,386
% Funded: 13.00%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Warren
Total Liability: $4,332,008
Unfunded Liability: $3,592,138
% Funded: 17.10%
Valuation Date: 7/1/11
Barrington
Total Liability: $5,992,513
Unfunded Liability: $4,774,940
% Funded: 20.30%
Valuation Date: 7/1/10
Westerly
Total Liability: $14,382,821
Unfunded Liability: $10,909,168
% Funded: 24.20%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
Newport
Total Liability: $119,400,005
Unfunded Liability: $90,372,187
% Funded: 24.30%
Valuation Date: 7/1/13
Bristol
Total Liability: $16,495,428
Unfunded Liability: $11,979,428
% Funded: 27.40%
Valuation Date: 7/1/14
Charlestown
Total Liability: $5,361,000
Unfunded Liability: $3,567,000
% Funded: 33.50%
Valuation Date: 7/1/12
