According to , the top-grossing Alaskan public employee in the last fiscal year was a state prison system forensic psychiatrist. This report was released following a request for public records by the Alaska Beacon.
Dwight Stallman earned $415,500 in total pay for fiscal year 2022. This period ran from July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022. This was the highest number of 15,484 employees. The compensation of an executive at the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation is not expected to be disclosed until 2023.
The state discloses the regular salaries of state workers every other day. However, many employees receive relocation expenses and bonuses for work in remote areas. They also receive overtime pay or deposits to their retirement accounts in return for unutilized leave. These additional payments are not always disclosed, but they may make up part of the employee’s gross pay.
The report lists four investment officers — three from Alaska Permanent Fund, one from Teachers Retirement System — as well as three state troopers and a Bethel corrections officer.
11 of the top 25 and 28 of 50 positions are in public safety — either with state troopers, the Department of Corrections, or both.
In order to remain competitive in a lack of licensed officers, police departments and prisons across the country have increased salaries and offered bonuses.
Also, investment employees are in high demand. Although the Alaska Permanent Fund’s top investment officers are among the most highly-paid in Alaska, the state-owned entity is facing vacancies as employees leave to find better-paying jobs elsewhere.
Frank Hurt, from the state Division of Personnel and Labor Relations, stated that not all state jobs are included in the newly released report.
The Alaska State Defense Force is the state’s organized militia. It excludes the National Guard, AmeriCorps volunteers and board members.
Because they use different accounting systems, independent public corporations such as Alaska Railroad, Alaska Gasline Development Corporation, and Alaska Housing Finance Corporation are not included.
These corporations published their highest earners, a list of executive salaries earlier in the year. This listing is based on a calendar year, not a fiscal year.
Frank Richards, AGDC president, received $447,167 total compensation in calendar year 2021. This made him the highest-paid state employee for that time period.
In the same listing, Bryan Butcher, CEO of AHFC Corp. was paid $305,150. This would have placed 12th in the total gross pay report. The $297,825 compensation for railroad CEO Bill O’Leary would have placed 15th.
Gov. Mike Dunleavy’s $145,002 salary was the No. 862 was the next highest on the list, right behind the Bethel airport manager.
Although the 2022 list of executive salaries will be available in early 2019, it is not as complete as the summary of gross pay.
Betsy Holley spoke for the Alaska Department of Corrections when she was asked why Dr. Stallman was named the state’s highest gross earner. She said that Stallman and the Bethel officers who placed in the top 10 were paid according to the salary schedules they have been assigned for their respective job classes, duty stations and applicable collective bargaining arrangements.
Stallman’s salary is $289,000. There was no overtime. This could indicate that he might have been paid bonuses or cash in vacation time.
At least some Alaska State Troopers were among the highest-earning in the state. They were all working for Detachment C which covers western and southwest Alaska. This area is larger than those of West Virginia, Ohio, and Alabama.
Alaska Department of Public Safety officials stated that some of the top-grossing employees are required to relocate to Alaska. They may also be responsible for cash outs for personal leave and retirement accounts.
Austin McDaniel is a spokesperson for DPS. He said that Lt. Lonnie Gonzales (Sgt. Scott Sands and trooper Abraham Garcia, all in the top 10, “are all dedicated long-term DPS employees who provide high-quality public safety services for the residents of rural Alaska.” All Alaska State Troopers receive a salary in accordance with Alaska law, their collective bargaining agreements and Alaska administrative code and rules.
The national average salary for police officers was $70,750 in 2021. This is the most recent year that the federal Bureau of Labor Statistics has released information. The average officer salary in Alaska was $87,510. This is fourth highest in the country.
The national average for psychiatrists is $249,760. However, the figure for forensic psychiatrists who receive additional training was not available.
The average household income for all Alaskans, and not just those who work for the state, is $91,547 according to the U.S. Census’s most recent American Community Survey.
Three of Alaska Permanent Fund Corporation’s investment executives, including chief investment officer Marcus Frampton are among the top 10 state employees.
Angela Rodell, APFC executive Director, earned $444 933 in total compensation in calendar year 2021. She was fired by the board of directors at the end the year, half way through FY22. Her gross pay report is not available.
Deven Mitchell, the corporation’s new director is expected to be paid a salary of $350,000. This would make him one of the top 10 most successful directors in the next year.
The preliminary information presented to the corporation’s board of directors earlier in the month indicated that investment staff managing the $76 Billion Permanent Fund are still being underpaid compared to other similar organizations.
The board is currently looking into a new system for salary and bonuses and voted to grant Mitchell the power of awarding incentive bonuses for FY22 performance, even though these bonuses must have positive returns.
For the first time in a decade, the fund had negative returns in FY22.
Instead, the bonuses will be used to encourage employees to stay with the company and will increase some APFC employees’ gross pay for FY22 beyond what is currently listed in the current report.
The Alaska Beacon originally published this story, but it has been republished with permission.
