Six-figure salaries highlight 2022 public payrolls

Mark Scheer, Niagara Gazette, Niagara Falls, N.Y.
·3 min read

Apr. 6—A total of 68 Niagara County employees were paid more than $100,000 last year, according to 2022 payroll records released earlier this week by an Albany based think tank that has been tracking the cost of local and state governments for years.

Updated payroll information made available by the Empire Center for Public Policy shows Niagara County District Attorney Brian Seaman received $200,400 in pay in 2022, making him the highest paid county employee last year.

Rounding out the top five highest paid county employees in 2022 were: county attorney Claude Joerg ($144,231); Niagara County Sheriff's Office Lt. Lucas James ($138,145); assistant Niagara County public defender Vincent Sandonato ($137,710) and sheriff's office investigator Douglas Daniels ($137,710).

The Empire Center found that pay for public employees across New York state increased by a total of $400 million from 2021 to 2022. State public employee pay information, which can be found online at the Empire Center for Public Policy's website, SeethroughNY.net, show total earnings reached $18.2 billion, up from $17.8 billion in 2021.

The Empire Center's analysis found that the number of people working for the government in New York state at any point during the year increased from 289,006 to 292,113, with the average full-time employee salary, not including overtime or other additional pay, coming in at $72,590, up from $71,482 in 2021.

The highest-paid state employee, according to the Empire Center's research, was Robert Corona, CEO of SUNY Upstate Medical University in Syracuse, who collected $919,123 in pay 2022.

In Western New York, the biggest earner last year was Maurice Linquist, the head coach for the University at Buffalo football team who was paid $697,409.

The Empire Center reported that 47 employees on the state payroll received more than $500,000 in compensation last year; 4,159 employees received more than $200,000 and 57,824 employees received more than $100,000.

A total of 903 state employees—all executive branch workers—were paid more than the governor's statutory salary of $250,000.

Of the top 100 highest paid employees, 84 were SUNY employees, with 41 of those working for the Downstate Medical Center.

When asked about SUNY employee salaries during a visit to Niagara County Community College on Thursday, new SUNY Chancellor John King Jr. said employee salaries are set by the SUNY Board of Trustees. On top of the 64 public college campuses around the state, SUNY also runs four medical schools and hospital systems in Brooklyn, Syracuse, and Stony Brook, he noted.

"They're always trying to think about what will it take to be competitive with other public higher ed systems around the country," King said.

The Empire Center noted, in its report, that the pay data does not reflect the added taxpayer cost of pension contributions, health insurance and other fringe benefits, which can add 40 percent or more to an employee's compensation.

The Empire Center, based in Albany, describes itself as an "independent, not-for-profit, non-partisan think tank." It regularly produces reports and analysis on state government activities and expenditures. On its website, the group notes that its work is dedicated to "promoting policies that can make New York a better place to live, work and raise a family."