You got to love this one.
It took much of a decade since the Daily News posted city salaries and the scandal in the City of Bell to shake up LA City Hall and get the Controller’s Office to put up a list in pdf format of all the salaries of city employees except the DWP.
But it took less than a day for KPCC’s online editor Jason Kandel and programmer Jeff Long to turn that list into a searchable database that is organized in a far more useful way.
In just a few seconds, you can find out that 81 city employees are paid over $200,000 and 243 over $150,000.
It’s nice work if you can get it and you clearly don’t have to work that hard, obviously.
Play around with KPCC’s database by salary, position and department and report back what you find interesting.
And even better, if you want a searchable database of city salaries and employee names based on a public records request made in May 2010, your can go to this facebook page which also has San Francisco, San Diego, Escondido and San Marcos city salaries
Think Wendy will push DWP to put up a similar database? Wait a minute, as the Controller, can’t SHE do that? Then again, maybe not, considering all the $250,000 campaign money she took from DWP’s IBEW. Bet’cha Brian D’Arcy wouldn’t like that.
Say Ron, didn’t you have some experience with Brian and the DWP regarding a public records request for salaries?
Good work Bell residents and the press. However the public and press need to demand the salaries and benefits for other local govt agencies (like housing authorities)who get dollars from other entities but are legally controlled by the city council etc via appts etc. Look at your tax increment taxing districts and other similar organizations that use tax supported dollars (including guarantees. The Executive Director of LA Housing Authority gets $500,000 a year plus car, housing and lump sum calpers gurantee investment (very unusual!)..
Ron,
I generally agree with you, and I think Wendy should post the names for City employees, but I’m not sure how KPCC scooped her in this case? She posted all the positions and salaries, and then KPCC reformatted it, how is that a scoop? Are you sure you’re not just shilling for your old employee Jason Kandel from the Daily News?
response to angry in CD 4 – by all means the names should be posted and the zip codes. Again, the people running our city don’t live in the city. When 80% of city employees (actually more) do not live in the city they work for, you have apathy and no regard for raising rates or fees or waste. Go to lasalaries.com for names, positions, departments, hourly rates.
Re: anonymous (11:02) and the reference to lasalaries.com – it’s way out-of-date – my wife retired more than 3 months ago, yet her name is still listed! Who’s job is it to keep that Web site current?
That’s my main gripe about the information on various Web sites – the authors rarely ever put a date on the page – the viewer has no idea as to whether the data is as of this week or ten years ago – so much for credibility. At least in a newspaper, there is a date on each page (of course that doesn’t make them any more credible – e.g., Los Angeles Times).
lasalaries.com is up-to-date for this year (2010) at least through January. Its much easier to sort and find information.
One item to note is that Smith’s aide and apparent heir, Mitch Englander is earning $74.16 per hour of your taxpayer dollars.
Info requested in “late May” – my wife retired May 8th, so why is her name on the file?
Also, not only names are inaccurate, but salaries and job titles are inaccurate. City employees are very mobile, switching departments, promoting to other open positions, time in grade promotions, etc. So if you like playing with old information, go for it, just always acknowledge that fact in every statement you make about what you find there.
The seriously obscene salaries of the Bell scale are of DWP employees. Those need to be published. Do we have Harbor and Airports too? If not, they are just a notch below DWP and should be published. These are the new robber barrons of the 21st century.
11:02
100% of the City Council and the Mayor reside in LA and they are the one’s who make the decisions on new taxes and rate hikes, and they are the one’s who led the City into this financial crisis.
I guess if someone lived in Detroit but worked for Toyota they couldn’t be trusted to do a good job.
Wendy=Shallow+Sweet+Headline grabber+Backstabber+WishiWashy+INCOMPETENT. Did I miss anything?
It is interesting to note how edgy city employees are about the fact that they do not live in the city. They tell you why residence zip codes should not be published on “the list”. They tell you why it does not matter. It is simple economics – the money the taxpayers spend on salaries for City Employees is more likely to be spent in Los Angeles at grocery, clothing, home improvement stores etc. if the employee lives in the city. In 1992 council put forward a motion that it was important to track businesses located in the city, or not, where the firms doing business in the city were located. Every contract and agreement has to have a completed “LA Residence Form” prior to a contract approval. Of course, like most else the city does, this information is probably just required by the Chief Administrative Office and has no statistic tracking for the past 18 years, the motion had no requirement other than another form to fill out. Just like it doesn’t matter that billions of salary dollars are spent outside the city. Ask for the yearly report generated by the “LA Residence” form, if it is available, you might find few companies are located in L.A. Figure out an incentive to keep city employees in the city, like points on an exam for living in this city (employees now get extra points added for seniority). It could bring in a billion in returned income to to this city. Too simple. Could this be called green recycling?
You have a valid argument about the value of keeping taxpayer money within the City.
But what if every city decided to do the same? How many LA City residents work for other City’s?
Why not force businesses in the City to only hire City residents.
How about Counties, should they join in? Maybe some cities could partner together and only hire residents from each others cities.
How long before people won’t spend in money unless they are in their own city boundaries?
Many City workers who don’t live in LA City boundaries spend plenty of money there, don’t forget they spend 10-12 hours 5 days a week in the City.
I get your point, and I’m not saying you’re completely wrong, but you have to think about the possible consequences of actions, and not only the ones you believe benefit your side.
Why not try to give employees who live in the city a benefit and incentive to stay involved in the city. The city gives extra points on exams for number of years employed by the city, why not number of years living in the city. If you are affected as a taxpayer (resident) and as an employee you stay involved and have to care.
You are taking it too far – I’m saying there is something wrong when 85% or more full time city employees don’t live in the city.
What money do they spend in the city, maybe gas once in a while, and lunch?
I live in LA, and rarely shop there. Go to COSTCO in other cities. The arguments above don’t make sense other than an endorsement of Mike Woo’s siberian dachas with no parking.
Who says the city gives points on exams based on years of service? Exams are for employment interviews and qualifications. Years of service is for retirement and seniority.
Also wondering where you got that figure of 85% from.
To: anonymous on August 8, 2010 1:44 PM
You wrote:
“Why not try to give employees who live in the city a benefit and incentive to stay involved in the city.”
Your idea is well meaning. If, by employees, you mean City employees, they get enough benefits and incentives and do not need more. As you can see by the chart, City employees are becoming the new elite in these tough economic times. They live better than most of the residents who pay their way. ‘No doubt, any incentive would cost the residents or businesses. In fact, with this brilliant Council, they’d probably tax the businesses to give the city employees that incentive.
Speaking of businesses, what happened to the snack bar at second floor City Hall?
‘No doubt, any incentive would cost the residents or businesses. In fact, with this brilliant Council, they’d probably tax the businesses to give the city employees that incentive.
No doubt? Based on what?
The whole point of making city workers live in city is to return taxpayer money to local businesses. And if they lived in the city, they would by definition, also be residents. You make no sense.
Post the salaries of the top officials in The Housing Authority City of LA unless you’re just too darn embarassed to let the public see how sleep at the wheel you are in Los Angeles. This is where the other seemingly innocent officials get their kick backs by allowing someone else to collect the money. OR ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE GANGSTER MAYOR????? !!!!
I don’t live in the City. There. I’ve said it.
However, I do spend about 12 hours here, most of it in my office, working. I would do my grocery shoppping in the City of L.A., but I go to CostCo and Smart and Final, and well, wasn’t there a Council aversion to CostCo, because they were “non-union”? Anyone remember that? No CostCo stores were allowed within the city limits. Even residents of L.A. who DON’T work in the City had to do their shopping outside the city, if they wanted to go to CostCo. There’s one grocery store in downtown L.A. It’ a Ralphs. Ralphs tends to be more expensive than the other grocery stores, plus it’s opposite to the direction I drive when I go home. I’m at my office before 7, leave after 4, and I do work hard. This post is being written during my morning break.
On Farmer’s Market day, I buy some vegetables and lots of fruit, so hey, I do some of my shopping in L.A. I drop almost $20 a day for lunch, breakfast, and an afternoon coffee, all in L.A. On days I meet friends for lunch, I can easily spend up to $60 a day. I pay to park here, and I buy other stuff, like sundries and gifts in Little Tokyo.
Working hard and doing what’s best for one’s employer isn’t merely a function of where one lives … it’s primarily the result of one’s work ethic. A person who has integrity, character, and pride in his/her work is going to have it regardless of whether or not they live in the city. A person who does not have those qualities will not.
It’s not as if the residents are so perfect. To those of you who think so, I have four words: The re-election of Villaraigosa.
All you Los Angelinos who live downtown are no longer allowed to travel 5 mins to Glendale. If you spend money in Glendale you’re a traitor to this city! I don’t care if you’re Armenian!
Same goes for you East Valley folks who like to hang out in Burbank. May God have mercy on your soul!
Each and every department’s budget should be cut 15%, and a minimum 10% paycut for everyone. This is what Mayor Bradley did, the last sensible Mayor we had.
Not only to they get a great salary but retirment isn’t bad.
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