Hospital CEOs top pay list, as top earner clears $10 million over the past five years
The heads of public health agencies are once again atop the list of California’s highest-paid special district workers.
Transparent California now has 2018 pay data for over 125,000 special district workers statewide, which includes agencies like fire and water districts, sanitation districts, transit agencies and public hospitals.
The top special district earners all came from public health systems, as shown below:
- Washington Hospital Healthcare System CEO Nancy Farber: $1,194,702.
- BETA Healthcare Group CEO Thomas Wander: $1,141,450.
- Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital District CEO Pedro Delgado Jr: $960,054.
- Tri-City Medical Center CEO Steven Dietlin: $837,494.
- Alameda Health System CEO Delvecchio Finley: $824,859.
The one outlier is Wander of the BETA Healthcare Group, which is a special district that provides liability and workers’ compensation coverage to public health systems.
The agency is able to offer competitive rates due to the fact that it does not have to pay any state premium or state or federal income tax, according to the district’s website. The ability to design and manage their program without having to comply with state regulations is also cited as another benefit that reduces costs.
While Wander was ranked as the 2nd highest-paid worker last year, the nearly $10 million in pay and benefits he received over the past five years was by far the most of any special district worker statewide.
“It is interesting to see a government agency pay its CEO millions of dollars, while simultaneously avoiding having to pay taxes or complying with state regulations,” Transparent California Executive Director Robert Fellner said.
“As the example of BETA illustrates, reducing the tax and regulatory burden imposed on California businesses will lead to lower costs to consumers, while also boosting the creation of high paying jobs.
“The Legislature should extend this prosperity-creating treatment to all businesses, not just a select few government agencies.”
To explore all the new 2018 data for special districts, please click here.
For more information, please contact Robert Fellner at 559-462-0122 or Robert@TransparentCalifornia.com.
Transparent California is California’s largest and most comprehensive database of public sector compensation and is a project of the Nevada Policy Research Institute, a nonpartisan, free-market think tank. The website is used by millions of Californians each year, including elected officials and lawmakers, government employees and their unions, government agencies, university researchers, the media, and concerned citizens alike. Learn more at TransparentCalifornia.com.
