High costs for payouts of retiring top-level executives have Howard officials rethinking the vacation accrual policy.
“It?s the policy [County Executive Ken UIman] inherited, but it won?t be the policy of the future,” Chief Administrative Officer Lonnie Robbins said.
The administration has asked for $400,000 to be transferred from a contingency fund to cover payouts, comprising vacation and severance pay, for six officials in the executive office or county administration who left when Ulman took the helm.
The move is in a bill before the County Council.
The amount is particularly high because one employee, former Chief Administrative Officer Raquel Sanudo, served in her position for 22 years and accrued the unused vacation days over time, Robbins said.
Typically, these positions aren?t in place for a long time, since they tend to change with new administrations, making this amount unusual.
County officials are reviewing policies of surrounding jurisdictions and “looking into developing alternatives to try to correct that problem,” Robbins said.
The $400,000 also covers some costs the administration may accrue when filling some vacancies in the executive office.
Council members raised concerns at a public hearing this week about the county?s policy, which does not limit the amount of vacation time a top-level exec can accrue.
When Council Member Greg Fox, R-District 5, questioned whether the county anticipates and budgets for this liability, Robbins told the council this money is not set aside.
MONEY TRAIL
The Howard administration has asked for $400,000 from a contingency fund to cover payouts for several top-level officials:
» Raquel Sanudo, chief administration officer: $188,639
» Rufus Clancy, human rights administrator: $25,593
» Victoria Goodman, public information office administrator: $36,600
» Herman Charity, assistant to the county executive: $48,878
» Jeff Starnes, special assistant: $11,685
» Donna Corfield, executive secretary: $35,147
Other county officials who left their posts received payouts, included in their departments? budgets and not in the bill before the council:
» Leonard Vaughan, housing director $52,962
» Neil Gaffney, deputy housing director $39,621
» Nina Benz, information technology director $63,754
Source: Howard County officials
