Leggett Crony Update

Examiner Reporter Hayley Peterson has an update on the story on Ike Leggett crony Mike Subin’s salary. We posted here about Leggett’s reward to crony Mike Subin, paying him $160,000 to chair a committee that meets four times per year. In his budget, County Executive Ike Leggett plans to give Mr. Subin a raise. The raise, to $195,000, would be 23%. What’s in your wallet?

Excerpt: Montgomery County Executive Ike Leggett is offering a former County Council member $37,200 on top of his current $158,464 compensation to help run hearings in addition to directing a criminal justice commission that meets four times a year.

Leggett proposed the bump for Rockville lawyer Michael Subin at the same time council members were questioning his current taxpayer-funded salary, which adds up to $158,464 with benefits. Subin sat on the County Council with Leggett 25 years ago and is a longtime political ally.

The 23 percent increase in Subin's compensation to $195,664 is included in Leggett's budget proposal for fiscal 2012, which would close a $300 million budget gap by firing 140 county employees, freezing salaries, and increasing taxes and fees, among other measures.

and: To earn the raise, Subin would continue as director of the commission and also help run the county's zoning and planning hearings -- bumping him up to a full-time employee, according to Lacefield.

"To build a new road or sidewalk or whatever, we have to hold hearings," Lacefield said. "And we need more help to do it -- particularly on [new] sidewalks." In addition to holding hearings, Subin would be charged with deciding whether to recommend or scrap the sidewalk proposals. Read more at the Washington Examiner, here and Parents' Coalition.