Sen. Jeff Stone (R-Riverside County) introduced legislation that will reduce political patronage and save the taxpayers of California several million dollars.
Where allowed by law, Senate Bill 281 will set the annual salary of members of more than a dozen state boards and commissions at $12,000 annually. Currently appointed members of these often part-time boards are paid salaries that can reach more than $120,000 per year.
On the same day Stone introduced his legislation, Gov. Jerry Brown appointed a former state senator, Ellen Corbet, to the California Unemployment Insurance Appeals Board and her annual salary will be $128,109.
“Californians are being taxed more than ever before, and our students at UC and CSU campuses are staring at tuition increases,” said Stone. “It seems tone-deaf that we are paying large salaries to people on boards and commissions who too often have little experience other than being termed-out legislators.”
Most people on these boards are doing a great service to the people of California, Stone said. However, in some cases these appointments are used as a way of taking care of former legislators by offering them high-paying positions in areas where they have little expertise.
“People who serve in these largely part-time posts should treat their appointments as a public service instead of a full-time patronage positions,” Stone said.
