The University System of Maryland regents voted unanimously Friday to change the way the system handles compensation decisions for high-ranking school officials.
At a Board of Regents meeting held at Towson University, members voted not to use bonus payments to compensate the system chancellor or campus presidents, according to system spokesman Mike Lurie.
Any existing compensation packages that include bonuses will be reviewed and renegotiated, Lurie said. And when a compensation decision is made in closed session, the board will now make a public announcement after the closed meeting, he said.
The changes were proposed after criticism of a $75,000 bonus awarded to Chancellor Robert Caret, who took over leadership of the 12-campus university system last summer.
Caret was granted the bonus and a $30,000 raise during a closed meeting of the Board of Regents in June. The raise and bonus were added to his base salary of $600,000. His contract allowed for an annual bonus of up to 15 percent of his salary.
Last week, state lawmakers met with James Brady, the board's chairman, who said Caret's contract would be revised to comply with the new policy. Some lawmakers questioned the bonus in light of rising tuition for students. The system increased in-state tuition 2 percent this year.
After Friday's meeting, Brady said there was a "feeling" among board members that the best course was to change the policy.
"We need to have a relationship with the General Assembly and with the governor's office that is very positive, and we don't want there to be something that is imminently fixable getting in the way of that," Brady said. "So what are we doing? We're fixing it.
"What matters is the students and their success, and that's what we're going to focus on," he said.
Baltimore Sun reporter Pamela Wood contributed to this article.