T.F. Green CEO is RI's No. 2 earner in public sector. Why his contract was extended.
The public authority that runs Rhode Island T.F. Green International Airport has extended the contract of CEO and President Iftikhar Ahmad – Rhode Island's second-highest-paid public-sector employee – for another three years.
Ahmad's contract running the Rhode Island Airport Corporation was set to expire at the end of last year before the corporation's board of directors in November extended it through 2026.
The new contract pays Ahmad $483,267 in annual base pay plus a performance bonus and other compensation.
Last year Ahmad made $785,468 in total earnings, including a $97,653 performance bonus and $212,585 in "other wages," according to figures from RIAC spokesman John Goodman.
What is the Rhode Island Airport Corporation?
The Airport Corporation is a quasi-state agency with board members appointed by the governor and significant funding and regulatory oversight from the Federal Aviation Administration.
If included with traditional state employees, Ahmad's $785,468 in compensation last year was the second only to that of University of Rhode Island men's basketball coach Ryan "Archie" Miller, who made $1.4 million.
Ahmad has led the Airport Corporation since 2016.
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Accomplishments and problems during Ahmad's tenure
He's lured new budget airlines to T.F. Green, overseen a series of terminal beautification projects (including the restrooms) and is currently working on building a $100-million cargo terminal for UPS and FedEx.
He also navigated the airport through the COVID pandemic shutdown of most air traffic in 2020.
Ahmad's tenure has not all been smooth. Airport management has clashed with some other government officials over development projects, and several high-ranking executives have left, with at least one alleging mistreatment.
In a statement explaining Ahmad's pay package, the Airport Corporation Board of Directors said he was being recruited heavily by other airports when he came to Rhode Island from New Orleans and is being heavily recruited by other airports now.
The board said T.F. Green was "languishing" in 2016 when he arrived, and he has since become a "transformational figure driving one of the state’s most important economic engines."
"He has doubled air service at the airport," the board statement said. "When we retained Iftikhar, the airport had seven airlines and 17 direct flights. Under Iftikhar’s leadership those numbers have grown to nine airlines and 34 direct flights – and we have every reason to believe we will be announcing additional direct flights this year."
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An Airport Corporation executive compensation study based on earnings from 2021 showed Ahmad's earnings ninth highest among a group of 21 airport authorities examined. The numbers suggest that executive pay does not always correlate with airport size.
MassPort, the public authority that runs Boston Logan, was paying its last permanent CEO Lisa Weiland around $418,000 annually, according to the Boston Herald, before she left last summer to work for utility National Grid,
How much did other top earners at RI's quasi-governmental agencies make in 2023?
Joe Reposa, former executive director, Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation: $314,781 (includes $37,132 accrued time cashouts upon his Dec. 8 resignation).
Charles Kelley, executive director of the Rhode Island Student Loan Authority: $237,120
Daniel McConaghy, executive director of the Rhode Island Convention Center Authority: $218,600.
Carol Ventura, executive director of RI Housing: $216,013.
Caroline Skuncik, 195 Commission executive director: $213,637.
William Ash, interim president of the Rhode Island Commerce Corporation: $194,125.
Scott Avedisian, Rhode Island Public Transit Authority CEO: $181,795.
Lori Silveira, executive director of the Rhode Island Turnpike and Bridge Authority: $182,787
(The Journal awaits compensation figures from some agencies.)
This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: TF Green CEO, RI's No. 2 earner in public sector, gets new contract
