Lawmakers Take Aim At Exec Pay Raises Amid UC, CSU Tuition Hikes
LOS ANGELES (CBS) — As tuition continues to skyrocket for college students across California, lawmakers in Sacramento want to make sure administrators aren't pocketing the extra revenue.
State Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) is leading the effort to limit pay for Cal State and University of California executives in years when school funding is flat or in decline.
KNX 1070's Claudia Peschiutta reports some of Yee's colleagues want to go a step further and cap CSU executive pay hikes at 10 percent in years when tuition goes up.
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"In tough economic times when you have other state departments cutting back, the CSU and UC should also do the same," said Yee. "They're not above it all."
But UC officials argue that Yee has it all backwards.
"What Senator Yee doesn't understand is that it's precisely in tough times like this when you need the best administrators we can recruit and retain, and to do that you have to pay competitive salaries," said spokesman Steve Monteel.
Cal State and UC administrators recently approved tuition hikes and big pay increases for some top administrators.
Monteel said three top people who were recently award big pay raises have helped bring in billions of dollars in revenue for the UC system.
