By KRISTY CHU / THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
RANCHO SANTA MARGARITA – The city will adjust its employee compensation information on its website to be more consistent with a model developed by the Orange County Grand Jury.
In June, the Grand Jury released a report analyzing all 34 Orange County cities and their efforts to provide information about public employee compensation. The report focused only on employees with a base salary of $100,000 or more.
The Grand Jury looked at city websites and assigned a letter grade based on content, clarity and accessibility. Rancho was given a grade of D, D, and A, respectively, with no city in the county receiving a grade higher than a B in the first two categories.
City staff said the low grades were likely due to a difference in perspective on how the information should appear on the website; the Grand Jury report indicates salary postings "appear to be intended for either job applicants or existing city employees," whereas they should be intended for the general public.
The report provided a model for cities to follow in determining total compensation and what information should be listed on its website. City staff is expected to post the completed information on its website as defined by the county.
The Grand Jury report also details seven principal findings based on a study of all cities in the county. According to the staff report, only two apply to Rancho:
•Public disclosure of municipal compensation levels is widely inconsistent, ranging from good to non-existent; and There is currently no disclosure of written employment contracts on the majority of cities' websites.
The city is required to respond to the Grand Jury about the report's findings. In its response, the city will partially agree with the first finding as they were "faced with a lack of consistent 'universal' criteria for measuring and disclosing compensation information." Staff also noted that any criteria for city websites were developed after the city had posted its information.
The council agreed with the second finding, and will post its written employment contract for the City Manager on its website. The city voted unanimously on Wednesday evening to implement the changes.
"I think this City Council has always prided itself in openness and transparency," Mayor Tony Beall said.
According to the Grand Jury report, Rancho Santa Margarita had the lowest number of $100,000 city employee positions per 10,000 residents compared to all other cities in the county.
http://www.ocregister.com/news/city-310077-report-jury.html
Contact the writer: 949-454-7343 or kchu@ocregister.com
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