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Aurora Police Department, Illinois, 2011
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Aurora Police Department salaries are public record under the Illinois Freedom of Information Act.
Salaries
According to a payroll database compiled by the Illinois-based watchdog group Better Government Association, there is one employee in the Aurora Police Department who earned more than $150,000 annually as of 2011, Chief of Police Gregory Thomas.[1] The BGA database does not allow searches to be broken down by department, only by last name or salary value.
| Position | Name | Salary |
| Chief of Police | Gregory Thomas | $154,731.20 |
| Police Commander | Joseph Groom | $132,662.41 |
| Police Commander | Paul Nelson | $132,662.41 |
| Police Commander | Kristen Ziman | $132,662.41 |
| Police Lieutenant | Nicholas Coronado | $116,355.20 |
| Police Lieutenant | Michael Abbs | $116,355.20 |
| Police Lieutenant | Scott Brosi | $116,355.20 |
| Police Lieutenant | Peter Inda | $116,355.20 |
| Police Lieutenant | Keefe Jackson | $116,355.20 |
| Police Lieutenant | Michael Doerzaph | $116,355.20 |
| Police Lieutenant | Keith Cross | $116,355.20 |
| Police Lieutenant | John Fichtel | $116,355.20 |
| Police Lieutenant | Brian Olsen | $116,355.20 |
| Police Sergeant | Matthew Ziman | $99,444.80 |
| Police Sergeant | Kimberly Groom | $99,444.80 |
| Police Sergeant | Rickey Ahlgren Jr. | $99,444.80 |
| Police Sergeant | Marie Blincoe | $99,444.80 |
| Patrolman | Charles Groom | $84,260.80 |
Benefits
According to the city website, Aurora offers the following benefits for full-time and eligible part-time employees:[2]
- Paid holiday, vacation and sick Leave
- Medical, dental and life insurance
- Section 125/Flexible Spending Plan
- Deferred compensation programs
- Illinois Municipal Retirement Fund (general employment)
- Employee Assistance Program
- Credit union
- Tuition assistance program
- Uniform allowance (as determined by policy)
- Translation pay
Salary records project
In 2011, Sunshine Review chose 152 local governments as the focus of research on public employee salaries. The editors of Sunshine Review selected eight states with relevant political contexts (listed alphabetically):
1. California
2. Florida
3. Illinois
4. Michigan
5. New Jersey
6. Pennsylvania
7. Texas
8. Wisconsin
Within these states, the editors of Sunshine Review focused on the most populous cities, counties and school districts, as well as the emergency services entities within these governments. The purpose of this selection method was to develop articles on governments affecting the most citizens.
The salary information garnered from these states were a combination of existing online resources and state Freedom of Information Act requests sent out to the governments.
A study published by the Pew Charitable Trusts and the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia said the city of Philadelphia faced challenges owing to the cost of public employee pensions.[3] The report claimed the amount that Philadelphia paid to pension recipients limited the city’s ability to use its budget effectively.
The report said there were more individuals receiving pension benefits—33,907 claimants in 2006—than workers in the city—28,701.[3] The authors recommended three steps towards addressing the problem of high costs in pensions: improved data collection, expanded transparency initiatives, and reductions to the city's overall budget.[3]
Salary schedules can be published as ranges, not as specific compensation figures, and may leave out compensation received through health and retirement benefits, as well as benefits such as commuter allowances and cell phone reimbursements. This project aimed to close the gap and provide a more accurate picture of public employee salaries for the sake of public education and transparency.
See also
External links
Footnotes
