If he gets the job of MCC president, Bill Smith’s New York state pension stands to increase substantially.
He is already vested in the system through his 11 years on the legislature, in which he earned between $18,500 and $23,000 a year.
An employee’s pension is calculated using the three consecutive years he earns the most money. Smith would make a lot more as president of a college than he did as a legislator, automatically giving his pension a major boost if he stays on the job for three years.
Smith is a lawyer at the prestigious Harris Beach firm, which probably bills per hour what some people earn in a week. Smith said it just doesn’t make sense for him to seek out the MCC job for the salary and pension. He seemed quite surprised when I asked the question, and said public jobs just wouldn’t pay him as well.
You can decide for yourself if a pension is a motivating factor in Smith’s decision to apply for the job.
Here’s the pension formula that would apply in this case, according to the state comptroller’s office:
For employees between 5 and 20 years in the system:(# years on the job) x (.0167) x (average salary of three consecutive years in which employee earned the most money)
For employees with more than 20 years in the system:(# years on the job) x (.02) x (average salary of three consecutive years in which employee earned the most money)
Retiring MCC president R. Thomas Flynn earns more than $215,000, according to the Democrat and Chronicle.
Smith’s pension right now would be $4,200. Using a conservative salary of $150,000, his pension would jump to more than $35,000, if he were to stay at MCC for three years. If he stays at MCC for nine years, his pension goes up to $60,000.
Feel free to check my math and let me know if I made a mistake!
Here is the
story I did today on Smith and Kessler, in which they defend their qualifications and say politics did not play a role in their selection.
