Bell Scandal Fails To Boost Public Pay Transparency
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — A corruption scandal in the city of Bell that led many public officials to pledge more transparency has done little to spur local government agencies to disclose salary information, according to state officials.
KNX 1070's Jon Baird reports California Controller John Chiang has demanded information from nearly 900 special districts, but so far, 172 of those agencies have failed to fully comply.
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The highest-paid local official was the general manager of a Bay Area Utility district who made over $400,000 in 2009. Several police and fire chiefs made over $250,000 each.
Chiang has already made public the salaries of some 600,000 city and county employees.
He wants all the special districts to provide the information or they risk facing fines of up to $5,000.
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