Politics

Watch Outraged Citizens Excoriate City School Superintendent Over $600,000 Salary

In other example of local city officials grossly abusing government funds, the Centinela School District Superintendent was berated by justifiably angry citizens over his enormous salary.

The small California community has been shocked to discover that in addition to the $663,000 compensation package granted to Jose Fernandez, he also received a monumental loan from the school district of $900,000 at 2 percent interest over 40 years, even though he had already declared bankruptcy twice!

Residents demanded answers at an emergency meeting in Lawndale Tuesday night after a series of reports revealed an excessive amount of compensation for the superintendent of the Centinela Valley Union High School District.

Four of the five current board members — Rojas, Rocio Pizano, Gloria Ramos and President Maritza Molina — were on the panel that unanimously approved Fernandez’s employment contract in late 2009. The contract includes a bevy of perks and benefits that added nearly $400,000 to his base salary in calendar year 2013. Although $215,000 of that came from a one-time expense, the contract grants Fernandez a 9 percent raise annually.

Unfortunately, there is no indication that any illegal act was committed, and shockingly, the superintendent actually defends his salary, saying he took over a district that had facilities “similar to Haiti.” The district includes only three High Schools, with about 6,500 students.

Makes you wonder how many other cities have such officials cashing in at the expense of their constituents’ well-being.