VanderKolk Urges Limits on ‘Golden Handshakes’ : Politics: The supervisor wants elected officials barred from cashing in on an early retirement program. The county will give $288,673 in such pay to retiring sheriff and auditor-controller.

Ventura County Supervisor Maria VanderKolk said Monday that she wants to prohibit elected officials from cashing in on an early retirement program in the wake of a disclosure that the county will spend $288,673 on golden handshakes for the sheriff and auditor-controller.

VanderKolk said she believes that it is inappropriate for the county’s elected leaders to receive early retirement pay because they “serve at the will of the people.”

“It does not seem correct to me,” VanderKolk said. “I don’t think a board member halfway through their term should be able to say, ‘I’m going to retire and I want the golden handshake.’ We have got to make the statement that this will never be offered to elected officials again.”

She said she plans to bring up her concerns with other board members when they receive a report on the golden handshake program at their meeting today. Supervisors John K. Flynn and Vicky Howard said Monday that they would support a move to ban golden handshakes for elected officials.

“I think the program had some flaws in it,” Flynn said. “I’m happy Maria is taking this up. I’m disturbed about it.”

In August, board members agreed to offer early retirement to employees in an effort to offset steep reductions in state funding. However, they did not stipulate that only appointed employees could participate in the program. As a result, Sheriff John V. Gillespie and Auditor-Controller Norman R. Hawkes, both elected officials, obtained the board’s permission in September to take the buyout at the end of this month. Both have two years left on their terms.

Under the program, Gillespie, 52, will receive a lump-sum payment of $47,834 when he retires at the end of this month and an additional $125,455 added into his pension plan. Hawkes, 58, will receive $31,826 when he leaves at the end of this month and an additional $83,558 calculated into his retirement.

Hawkes and Gillespie will also receive six months severance pay--totaling $147,000 for both--as a special perk offered to elected officials who have more than 10 years service with the county. The supervisors have voted to eliminate that benefit, starting in January.

According to a county report released last week, a total of 38 people are expected to retire early, at a cost of $1.4 million. The county expects to eliminate nearly 45 positions through retirement and attrition, for a savings of nearly $2.3 million, the report said.

In retrospect, VanderKolk said, the supervisors should have agreed in August that no elected officials could participate in the program. She said the board cannot reverse its decision to allow Hawkes and Gillespie to take the buyout.

“I’m frustrated,” she said. “I feel something slipped through the cracks that should not have. This is nothing against Norm and John, they both have done wonderful things for the county.

“But the program should have been more closely defined. I hope the public will understand that we made a (retirement) contract with them and we have to stick with it.”

Howard added: “If we had realized how the program could be used, we would have set it up differently. To my surprise some of our top people have decided to leave. This is not what we expected.”

But Gillespie said in an interview Monday that he believes that elected officials should be allowed to take golden handshakes.

“The only difference between me and other department heads is I happen to be elected,” he said. “Why should that exclude me from getting it? We all pay into the same retirement system. . . . I think we deserve it as much as anyone.”

Hawkes could not be reached for comment.

Gillespie said the controversy surrounding the golden handshakes makes it look as if he is doing something wrong. He said he is simply participating in a program set up by the supervisors.

“I really resent it,” Gillespie said. “I feel like I’m doing something unethical here when all I have done is dedicate my life to public service.”

In addition, Gillespie and Hawkes have taken criticism recently because the county includes most of their perks to determine their retirement pay. Last year, Gillespie received a total compensation package of $157,390. His base pay was $98,982. Hawkes received a pay package of $138,552. His base salary was $91,910.

“The benefits were given instead of raises, yet they were taxed just like a raise would be,” Gillespie said. “They are part of your base compensation and should not be excluded (from retirement calculations).

“I wanted to go out with a lot of respect and pride. This is having a detrimental effect on the department. The morale among the managers is very bad. They feel the boss is being picked on.”