City Councilman Kyle Langan asserts that Police Chief AJ Perez’s payout for time owed should be based on his unionized $110,000 captain’s pay, not his $145,428 salary as the department’s top cop.
Some may consider this poor policy, but supporters of the chief say he’s just playing by the rules.
From Brian Lockhart, CT Post:
Police Chief Armando Perez’s payout for “banked” vacation and other unused time off is higher than first reported–and closer to the jaw-dropping number Deputy Chief James Honis received last year upon retirement.
Perez, per his new, five-year contract, is cashing in on owed time he accumulated during his 38-year career with the Bridgeport department.
He had requested the money be divided into three payments. The first of those, according to the city, was $171,830–$122,017 after taxes–issued to Perez last week.
At that time the details of the remaining two amounts were not available. Perez in an interview had estimated they would be $80,000 a piece.
It turned out the chief was off by several thousands of dollars. The city this week said Perez will be receiving $91,629 after taxes in August, and an additional $91,629 after taxes in July, 2020.
Full story here.
I did say it would be more than double initially reported on the last story!!
If it’s allowable by contract and within the guidelines of what the rules are presently then you can’t paint the Chief as the villain.
Is this really surprising when considering the current occupant of the mayor’s office? (Emphasis on OCCUPANT.) This administration was corrupt before the final votes were tallied. Plenty of Little Joe’s friends were placed on the municipal payroll in jobs with phat salaries. Some collected paychecks for jobs that were not clearly defined. Now A.J. gets a huge check for being a dedicated apple polisher.
It is taxpayer money being spent according to plans, contracts, protocols that have no practical oversight after approved, and very little to go on from Labor Relations or City Attorney office when discussed or brought up for approval.
I and others have always said that Chief AJ Perez is a nice guy, but the comedy of what happened over the duration of several City Council meetings in the case of Linda Lee and her towed van is emblematic of City employees with no care for taxpayer expense. After six months of non-intervention from June when AJ said he would take care of the issue the next day, and when the van was in a lot in the City, it took four months, a denial from City Attorney as to responsibility and my regular reporting to the CC that the matter remained open and unsolved. An attorney offered his service to Lee in November and her settlement came from the City($5,000). But the taxpayers also paid an attorney fee ($3,000?). And yours truly received a warm feeling for knowing that it was my representation, provided without charge, that really moved the case and proved my closing statement:Time Will Tell.
JML, I’m in agreement with you, Labor Relation, the City Attorney and David Dunn the City’s Personnel Director all had to ok these payments. The City Charter states that someone working in a higher capacity can only work in that position for 120 days. There was a permanent position open for the Police Chief and David Dunn should have called for a nationwide test for the position of Police Chief. Mayor Ganim did not want to have that exam, there are other Captains in the Police Department who could have also serve as the Acting Police Chief. Union members do not have paid sick days to carry over to cash in at a later date, they have unlimited sick time with no pay because they are salary employees. When did AJ Perez stop paying union dues?
Add those numbers up.
$171K fist installment
$ 92K 2nd installment
$ 92K 3rd installment
$355K Total
He doesn’t count after taxes. It’s gross. Most certainly.
Perez said “the city offered it and it took advantage of it.”
HE MOST CERTAINLY DID!!!
As I’m reading this again the $91K is after taxes?
So that means we’ll in excess of $100K for the final two installments.
Would Brian or Lenny get the figures correct? We are reaching levels of absurdity.
Paging Marilyn Moore!
Paging Marilyn Moore!!
As the top cop in a city, he is on the hook pressure wise for all good and bad in the department. That’s a lot of pressure. If the rules say he get’s that money than begrudging him is just jealousy.
I’m not begrudging him. I’m blaming this stupid city. We need help to protect us from ourselves!!!
The lure of a city job is it’s benefits, or used to be. City employees are paying more out of pocket than ever before obviously.
One time city workers paid nothing out of pocket but the pay scale was below private companies.
The chiefs been here along time and his payout proves that, if you start now the benefits are half of what they once were.
The value of money is its availability in a time of need. Need for lifetime income? Need for funds to educate your family? Lots of needs for healthcare, insurance and retirement benefits by employees, right? But benefit values have increased for many City employees faster than their expense. And sharing in healthcare expense as happens in many private employment situations is the rule not the exception. And healthcare benefits as a retired employee in the private sector?? How many City taxpayers enjoy those today unless you worked for a governmental employer?
Today I heard someone claiming knowledge of Police Department practices that in the past, before his rise to Chief, A J Perez was the clerk who registered and maintained the records that are kept to provide info to calculate benefits when that time is due. True or not? Do not know and have no way to easily confirm or deny, but isn’t that the problem with oversight in Bridgeport. Look for something and there is no light to shine. No one doing oversight. Lack of transparency. Yet at the end of the day, well after creating and enhancing benefits has occurred, and ready to be enjoyed by the employee, the route to seeming “wealth and riches” is revealed and the taxpayer has regrets, at least this one does.
Who will tell us about pay scales, benefit packages, hours of work, vacations, etc. in a way that makes sense to those who are paying for government? Did Ganim1 do that? I cannot find the record. Ganim2 does not care, it seems. Why not? Time will tell.
In theory,The City Council should have oversight of all activities of the City of Bridgeport. We would need a City Council that has the power and resources to have complete oversight. However out present City Charter has created a strong mayor/weak City Council share of power. This calls for CHARTER CHANGE and a CHARTER REVISION COMMITTEE. Of course,the status quo(TestaGanim and ALL their puppets want no part of it and would fight it vociferously. This change can only happen if the All/Most Ganim Testa puppets are FIRED from their elected positions. If that happens,the People of Bridgeport can turn to the people who are in management of the City of Bridgeport. Police chief,Fire chief,Labor Relations,OPED,Finance and OPM,Public Woks etc etc. All that is truly a high order.
For the sake of not arguing let’s say that AJ Perez did negotiate his benefit package and those numbers are right, Perez was promoted from captain to acting chief in March 2016, so what took Mayor Ganim so long to call for a test for police chief when there was a permanent vacancy for the position? Where was Labor Relation, the City Attorney and David Dunn the City’s Personnel Director in calling for a open and competitive police chief exam when there was a permanent vacancy? The City Charter states that someone working in a higher capacity (Acting) can only work in that position for 120 days so the taxpayers paid Perez from March 2016 as Acting Police Chief until he was made permanent chief a few months ago. Unfortunately most of the City Council members are just cheerleaders for Perez and did no background review of the entire situation.
Ron,
As we both have been employed by the City of Bridgeport specifically for public safety. I ask you when has the City ever given a promotional exam on time according to the City Charter? Never. In 1990 I believe a promotional exam was given for the position of Sargeant in the Police department. 50+ we’re promoted from that list because it had been years since an exam had been given when clearly there were openings for the position. Then you add in what the city had to pay out in grievances for not giving the test on time and it added up to thousands of dollars in tax payer’s money for the city’s incompetence.
Jose, I can’t speak for other city departments but in the Fire department there were a number of fire exams that the federal court held up in the 1990’s because discrimination first in hiring and then promotion. Things are totally different now, first you have a unqualified (a person not officially recognized as a practioner of a particular profession or activity through having satisfied the relevant conditions or requirements) in David Dunn, the City’s Personnel Director who calls for all City exams. David Dunn has been in his position for over 11 years in a “Acting” position which is a position that calls for a national search with certain requirements. Mayor Ganim has refuse to call for the exam and Labor Relation has refuse to call for the exam. David Dunn is NOT going to call for the exam because in doesn’t want to lose his position and he’s scare to compete with others nationwide who would take that exam. Jose, this is so far over the head of the City Council plus you would have to care about Bridgeport and to act on things that are illegal and things that hold the City back and sadly that’s NOT the Bridgeport City Council.
Ron,
We should not be surprised. It’s business as usual in the City of Bridgeport political soap opera. As long as Test is in charge things will never change. Take care brother.
This is sickening. I am calling on my comrades Ron and Don to hop on this issue. I have full trust in them to do the right thing and to make a change. Overall, it is black history month. If your voices were never heard, somebody might actually listen to you this month.