When I write an article for the citizens of Culver City, I try to be honest and accurate.
I have to apologize on this one, though.
I expected outgoing City Manager Mark Scott to stay at least 19 months in Culver City before he took the money and ran.
I was wrong.
This was not the big news of the evening on Monday night at the Council Chambers.
It was the vote by all five City Council members to pass the PERS Retirement Golden Handshake program for city employees. In my last article, I talked about the three- member majority on the Council. Well, this one was a 5 to 0 unanimous decision to approve the Golden Handshake. This means all five Council members are responsible this time.
They seemed to make light of Steve Gourley’s Speaker Card message that said: Call me if you want information on how we handled this issue when I was on the City Council.
I think they should have used their Phone-a-Friend Lifeline before they gave away all of the taxpayers’ money again for nothing.
I do not speak for Mr. Gourley. But he probably would have told them that in the 1990s the city was faced with a budget shortfall and possible layoffs.
The Council decided that it did not make sense to increase the budget deficit by paying employees millions of dollars to no longer work for the city. If the city were in a position where they no longer could pay for employees to work, then they would have to lay them off. They would not have spent more money the city did not have to have the workers retire.
Time for a Little Drama
Last Monday night, Mr. Scott walked into the Council Chambers wearing the poker face he has had on since he started testing for the City Manager’s position.
He pitched the PERS Golden Handshake contract, and the Council fell for it. He also advised the community that he was resigning as City Manager.
With that same poker face, he has told the community that life has dealt him a bad hand by giving a 60-year-old man elderly parents and he is forced to take a job in the Central Valley for a lot less money.
With that, the City Council went all in with the taxpayers money, and Mark Scott walked away with the whole pot.
Under the PERS Golden Handshake contract, the city must offer this option to all employees who have five years in PERS, are of retirement age and can retire between 2/15/2010 and 06/15/2010.
Approximately 45 positions were listed on the staff report.
But one person who qualifies for the Golden Handshake was missing.
Mark Scott qualifies for this. If he requests it, the city has to give it to him.
Poor Mark Scott had to give up his $100,000 a year PERS Retirement to come here to save this poor Westside city, and nine months later he leaves with a new PERS Retirement worth over $200,000 per year.
This will go good with the $189,000 per year he will be making in Fresno.
You see, he does not have to give up his PERS Retirement to work in Fresno.
Fresno is one of a handful of cities in California that has its own retirement system.
Trust me on this one:
That $400,000 a year goes a long way in Fresno.
Mr. Smith, a retired police officer, may be contacted at scsinvest@sbcglobal.net
