The Richmond Times-Dispatch had published a searchable database of all Virginia state employees who make over the statewide median of $47,500. Â They have also published a list of the 20 highest paid state employees. Â They are:
Top 20 state salaries:
Ronald Schmitz, chief investment officer, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $382,500
Total salary: $930,913
Charles Grant, managing director, internal asset management, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $317,370
Total salary: $741,630
Steven Peterson, managing director, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $282,067
Total salary: $608,211
Kenneth Howell, managing director-global investments, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $284,085
Total salary: $597,604
John Grier, director, internal equity management, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $258,145
Total salary: $589,587
Stephen McClelland, program director, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $258,015
Total salary: $563,325
Field Griffith, program director, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $257,560
Total salary: $563,226
Irving L. Kron, professor, University of Virginia Health Systems
Base salary: $91,683
Total salary: $561,099
Angel Cabrera, president, George Mason University
Base salary: $151,273
Total salary: $536,714
Robert Cofield, associate vice president for hospital and clinic operations, University of Virginia Medical Center
Base salary: $524.345
Total salary: $524,345
Robert Bruner, dean of Darden School of Business, University of Virginia
Base salary: $518,900
Total salary: $518,900
Bryan Gardiner, director, fixed income management, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $234,380
Total salary: $515,387
Michael Rao, president, Virginia Commonwealth University
Base salary: $181,387
Total salary: $503,154
Timothy Sands, president, Virginia Tech
Base salary: $184,919
Total salary: $500,000
Pamela Sutton-Wallace, chief executive officer, UVa Medical Center
Base salary: $500,000
Total salary: $500,000
Paul Mahoney, dean, University of Virginia School of Law
Base salary: $495,000
Total salary: $495,000
Teresa Sullivan, president, University of Virginia
Base salary: $179,625
Total salary: $494,699
Daniel Whitlock, program director, Virginia Retirement System
Base salary: $221,837
Total salary: $482,993
Michael Friedlander, executive director, Carilion Research Institute, Virginia Tech
Base salary: $481,000
Total salary: $481,000
Thomas Loughran, director, University of Virginia Cancer Center
Base salary: $473,400
Total salary: $473,400
The RoanokeTimes does a good job of explaining why the investment officers of the Virginia Retirement System make so much money.  They are responsible for generating investment income for the $68.1 billion retirement system.  But the gap between their pay and other state employees continues to increase.
We previously published a list of the salaries for the Presidents of all of Virginia public universities here.Â
More links to Virginia state employee salaries here.Â
19 comments
Did any one see this, as we will have to FOIA it now. I sent in FOIA information & complaints, I’m wondering if someone alerted the media. Getting salaries has been available for like 8 years plus.
Last week, the Assembly passed SB 202, which undid a major push eight years ago to ensure that all of our public spending was “on-line” and searchable by ordinary citizens. This, of course, meant disclosing the salaries of public employees over a certain income level. However, SB 202 has undone all of that, which means that you will no longer know how much a public employee (even a city manager) is paid unless you make a formal FOIA request. (Because we all have time to do that).
This bad idea passed on a 27-12 vote.
Today the Senate passed SB 552 which is even more sweeping. It actually prohibits from disclosure not just the salary information but even the NAMES of public safety personnel, including the Sheriff, the Chief of Police and the Fire Chief.
On the floor today, I pointed out that a Chief of Police could put his own family on the payroll and be protected from disclosure. (Yes, I know that stuff never happens, especially not in Richmond). This could also be an issue if a law enforcement agency hires an officer with a poor record from another jurisdiction — and nobody knows. Again, who are we protecting?
Again, the bill passed 25-15.
Work harder, Virginians!! Obscenely-compensated state gov workers are depending on YOUR TAXES!
Your panicky outburst makes you sound like you think all state workers are overpaid. Is that where your thinking is?
Once again I am going to ask you to stick with one screen name. Thank you.
Once again, I decline your offer. If you want to enforce rules, then establish them. You can have a wide open forum and not expect people to use the system the way you designed it.
Screen names don’t hurt people. Guns do
It’s a long established rule. Please use one screen name.
Change your system. You are focusing on the wrong thing here. If you want open discourse then screen names don’t matter. But you only want your radical right views to be heard so you complain about unimportant things all while trying to keep the attention off your illogical and hateful rants. Force real names or stop whining
But I will give you a fair offer. Acknowledge that it was wrong to try to connect Obama’s words about shootings to this terrorist attack and I will start using only one screen name. Deal?
No deals. Too many complaints have been made about you. You’re gone. Buh-bye now.
Sweet. banned from another radical right site that spouts hate and despair.
It ain’t right, but what does one do to change it?
Are they paid the fair market prices for their services?
What is the market rate is the question. Surely its not the same as private sector advisors who have fight and claw for market share. VRS has a captive clientele that has no choice but to use it for a large chunk of thier retirement funding.
Yes, but these big boys invest that money and are judged on how much money their investments make.
Do minimum wage workers get paid by how many hamburgers they cook? Does a carpenter get paid by how many nails he hammers? All commision work does is create liars, crooks, and thieves.
The state has no business in the retirement business. Just as government has no business in the student loan rackets. And frankly, the state should get out of higher education.
Also, the top twenty are made up of more than just VRS overpaids. In my opinion the only way to get a state job is to be “connected”.
To think that one could just apply for one of these overpaid positions, one would have to be as ignorant as someone who worships hate radio.
Did you post the RTD link to expose these people as being underpaid?
Yes, they are paid a fair market wage. Otherwise, either they would not do the job or VRS would hire someone else
The market value for the poor and middle-class worker is rigged by the importation of illegal foreign cheap labor, and the importation of Communist manufactured products.
Why should the “elite” operate by a different set of rules to determine fair market value for their services than the poor and middle-class have to?
What are your ranting about now? Are you trying to say that the VRS leadership is overrun with Mexican? Or maybe you are complaining because you think you should be paid more and blame Mexican gangs for yours woes? Stay focused
With salaries like those, the VRS people shouldn’t require a pension. They should just squirrel a little away each year, and be able to survive nicely.