Benefits November 8, 2011
School Districts Make Salary, Pension Info Public
November 8, 2011 (PLANSPONSOR.com) - A searchable online database of earnings for 373,971 employees of New York State school districts outside New York City has been posted at www.SeeThroughNY.net, the North Country Gazette reports.
Reported by Rebecca Moore
At the same time, the Albuquerque Journal is reporting that Albuquerque Public Schools (APS) is posting the names, salaries and titles of its 11,500 employees on its Web site.
According to the North Country Gazette, the newly updated database includes pay for teachers, administrators and others, as reported for the 12 month-period ending June 30, 2011, to the New York State Teachers Retirement System (NYSTRS members). It also includes pay for other school employees, such as custodians, aides and bus drivers, for the 12 month-period ending March 31, 2011, as reported to the New York State Employees Retirement System (NYSLRS members). Also posted is public employee pension data.
According to the Albuquerque Journal, APS Superintendent Winston Brooks said his decision was prompted by similar listings posted by Albuquerque Mayor Richard Berry and Governor Susana Martinez, as well as the passage of the Sunshine Portal Transparency Act – which takes effect next July and says school districts must post their “checkbooks,” salary schedules and policies, a listing of all real estate holdings, and a directory of all employee positions by school, title and salary. The law does not require districts to post the names of employees, but Brooks said he decided to do so “in the spirit of transparency.”