Major F. Riddick is a 44-year-old manager with a bright future. Yet he's turned down a $250,000 job in the private sector for a post that will pay him $100,000 -- which is $27,000 less than he was earning as Prince George's administrator.
For Mr. Riddick, money is not the sole motivation. He will be Gov.-elect Parris N. Glendening's chief of staff. But for such an important and vital undertaking, is Mr. Riddick underpaid?
Penny-pinchers say "no." Government work at the highest levels is a public honor. It is a rare opportunity to make a difference. You can't put a monetary value on such service. And since public servants are paid with taxpayer dollars, frugality should be a priority -- especially in salaries and fringes, the critics say.
The angry mood of voters has put a damper on elected officials' wages and perks. Baltimore County's new executive, C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, scotched plans to sell the county's four-year old Ford Crown Victoria and buy a four-wheel-drive vehicle for fear of public outrage. Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke, also worried about voter backlash, resisted efforts of a non-partisan commission to set his pay at $100,000; the mayor felt voters would tolerate only $80,000. (His current pay: $60,000.)
The biggest problem is attracting top-flight managers to public life. The salaries cannot compete with private-sector compensation. Given Marylanders' cynicism and distrust of government these days, there's not much glory in taking on the task of running a Cabinet-level department or assuming the powers of chief of staff, either.
Still, taxpayers should have the best and brightest administrators running their government. But finding high-powered managers willing to take a 50 percent pay cut to serve the public isn't easy. The financial pressure it places on a manager's family is one reason.
A balance has to be found. Mr. Glendening says he will raise pay scales for his top aides but also cut the size of the governor's staff. The net result should be a wash for taxpayers.
The same balancing act should guide Mr. Ruppersberger. A year from now, his 1991 government car may have 200,000 miles on it. Time to sell. A four-wheel-drive vehicle would make more sense than another luxury car. But it could cost more.
Taxpayers have to realize that even top public servants need to trade in their old cars sometime. It's important they get around in bad weather -- even if it means spending a bit. And public managers should be paid salaries high enough to make the jobs appealing to the best applicants. You can take penny-pinching only so far before you harm the quality of government that citizens receive.