Area school superintendents top a list of the region’s biggest earners in local government — netting more than $1.4 million collectively this year — according to the Maryland Association of Counties’ first-ever salary survey.
Baltimore County schools chief Joe Hairston tops the list at nearly $286,600 a year, more than $117,000 above the state average for superintendents. Hairston is followed by Howard County Schools Superintendent Sydney Cousin and his Baltimore City counterpart, Andres Alonso.
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“Based on difficulty points, I’m wondering why I’m not number one,” Alonso joked. “The job is exhilarating, and no other job other than mayor has the potential to change the city for the better in the long run.”
Anne Arundel County schools chief Kevin Maxwell and Baltimore City State’s Attorney Patricia Jessamy round out the Baltimore region’s top five local government earners, according to an analysis of MACo data released last week and interviews conducted by The Examiner. The association compiled salary data this year after the Institute for Governmental Service and Research at the University of Maryland discontinued its biannual survey.
Future surveys will be published each fall and may include benefits information — which can add from 30 percent to 35 percent to payroll costs in some counties like Baltimore — MACo officials said. (Click here to download the report.)
This year’s survey identified five Baltimore City department head positions that could be paid as much as $204,000 each annually, but officials said they actually received an average $149,000 in 2008.
Baltimore Mayor Sheila Dixon said Public Works Director David Scott and City Solicitor George Nilson, who both earn $160,000 annually, are locked into City Council-approved contracts that prevent future raises.
Nilson, Scott and Dixon sit on the city’s Board of Estimates, which approved Jessamy’s $229,500 salary, about $108,000 more than the state average. Marti Burns, a spokeswoman in Jessamy’s office, said the state’s attorney’s salary remained unchanged for most of her 20-year career.
“She works extremely hard for the citizens, night and day,” said her spokeswoman, Marti Burns. “She’s certainly worth every penny.”
Other top-earners also said their salaries are comparable to similar private-sector positions, or are justified by tenure and responsibility.
Charles Herndon, a spokesman for Baltimore County public schools, said Hairston’s salary reflects his longevity.
“He also heads one of the largest school systems in the country,” Herndon said. “I think you have to look at it in that light.”
Region’s Top 25 Earners
1) $286,598 Baltimore County Superintendent Joe Hairston
2) $265,000 Howard County Schools Superintendent Sydney Cousins
3) $240,000 Baltimore City Superintendent Andres Alonso
4) $238,703 Anne Arundel County Superintendent Kevin Maxwell
5) $229,500 Baltimore City State’s Attorney Patricia Jessamy
6) $195,000 Baltimore County Police Chief Jim Johnson
7) $193,000 Baltimore City Police Commissioner Frederick Bealefeld
tie $193,000 Baltimore County state’s attorney Scott Shellenberger
9) $191,280 Carroll County Superintendent Charles “Chuck” Ecker
10) $190,000 Harford County Schools Superintendent Jacqueline Haas
tie $190,000 Baltimore County Administrator Fred Homan
12) $173,813 Baltimore County Police Commander of Operations Col. Michael McCleese
13) $171,538 Howard County Director of Public Works James Irvin
14) $172,500 Baltimore County Fire Chief John Hohman
15) $169,600 Baltimore City Finance director Edward Gallagher
16) $168,730 Howard County Chief Administrative Officer Lonnie Robbins
17) $166,011 Anne Arundel County Administrator Dennis Callahan
18) $161,637 Howard County Police Chief William McMahon
19) $160,000 Baltimore City Solicitor George Nilson
tie $160,000 Baltimore City Director of Public Works David Scott
21) $158,718 Baltimore County Director of Budget & Finance Keith Dorsey
tie $158,718 Baltimore County Director of Information & Technology Rob Stradling
tie $158,718 Baltimore County Director of Economic Development David Iannucci
tie $158,718 Baltimore County Attorney John Beverungen
25) $151,263 Howard County Executive Ken Ulman
Source: Maryland Association of Counties
Examiner Staff Writer Luke Broadwater contributed to this report.
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