# $175,000 plum job for governor’s pal



## MCADPD24 (Nov 7, 2008)

Outrage is sweeping Beacon Hill after Gov. *Deval Patrick* quietly slipped a $175,000 plum job to a political pal while squeezing taxpayers to pay more for less from the debt-ridden state government.
Asking citizens to fork over 19 cents more per gallon at the gas pump while bracing for cuts of cops and teachers, Patrick awarded supporter Marian Walsh the pricey plum as assistant executive director of the state's Health and Educational Facilities Authority.
The job has been vacant for 12 years. The appointment of Walsh, 54, a Democratic state senator from West Roxbury, was revealed amid news of a $1 billion state deficit while Patrick continued his vacation in Jamaica.

"We're facing a fiscal crisis and he's giving away a $175,000 job," said House Minority Leader Brad Jones (R-North Reading). "This was vacant for several years. Why do we need it now?"
"While the state's in a fiscal calamity and we're trying to stay afloat, the governor is basically creating this pricey position," said Senate Minority Leader Richard Tisei (R-Wakefield).
The six-digit salary boost won't affect Walsh's pension because the quasi-independent authority isn't under the state retirement system. She currently makes $76,000 a year as majority whip and has served in the Senate since 1993.
Patrick appointed Walsh's husband, retired District Court judge Paul Buckley, to a $113,000-a-year job as director of the state's industrial accident board. He's eligible to take home a $92,000 pension upon retiring.
Health authority spokesman Liam Sullivan said Walsh will help the quasi-independent agency boost its "government relations expertise."
The agency works to funnel tax-exempt financing for capital projects to nonprofit institutions.
The appointment flies in the face of Patrick's recent rhetoric asking residents to sacrifice during tough times. It also puts him at odds with his campaign pledge to shun political patronage.
"This is one commonwealth. We share in the sacrifices. We share in the challenges," Patrick said just last month when he unveiled his plan to hike the gas tax.
Barbara Anderson, director of Citizens for Limited Taxation, said the Walsh appointment means residents are even less likely to support any of Patrick's suggested new taxes.
"It's a nice big 'Forget about it,' when he asks for any of the increases," Anderson said. "If we didn't need her last month or last year, why do we need her now?"
Patrick spokesman Joe Landolfi sent an e-mailed statement saying Walsh was qualified for the position.
Walsh, who would not address the controversy, has sought to exit the Senate for a few years, sources say. She was a finalist for a judgeship last year, and she previously was considered by the administration for the executive director's post at HEFA.


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## SinePari (Aug 15, 2004)

MCADPD24 said:


> The six-digit salary boost won't affect Walsh's pension because the quasi-independent authority isn't under the state retirement system. She currently makes $76,000 a year as majority whip and has served in the Senate since 1993.
> 
> Patrick appointed Walsh's husband, retired District Court judge Paul Buckley, to a $113,000-a-year job as director of the state's industrial accident board. He's eligible to take home a $92,000 pension upon retiring.


The voters should take note of this when he asks for pension reform.


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## 7costanza (Aug 29, 2006)

*Patrick awards state senator a $175,000 job*

Governor Deval Patrick has awarded one of his earliest political supporters, State Senator Marian Walsh, a $175,000 job as an assistant director at a state bonding authority, despite declaring in the past that he would not honor patronage appointment requests from lawmakers.









*Walsh
*
The board of the Massachusetts Health and Education Facilities Authority, which is dominated by Patrick appointees, will approve the appointment at its meeting this afternoon, a senior administration official confirmed today. Walsh's office confirmed the appointment after an inquiry from the Globe.
Walsh, a 54-year-old Democrat from West Roxbury, had originally been slated to take over as executive director but a Globe story, written after the newspaper obtained an internal e-mail from a Walsh adviser to Patrick's chief of staff, forced the administration to back down. The plan at the time was for her to replace the current director, Benson T. Caswell, who has extensive experience in public bonding and nonprofit debt.
Last May, Walsh's adviser, Michael Goldman, had emailed Patrick's chief of staff Doug Rubin, outlining an apparent agreement to appoint her to Caswell's $225,000 job by September. ''Is this still the game plan? If so great!'' wrote Goldman.

Walsh, the Senate majority whip, is currently paid $76,000 a year. She had been looking to give up her seat for a state job for several years. Senate sources have said her relationship with Senate President Therese Murray has been strained. She has served in the Senate since her election in 1992. She had served two terms in the House.
Walsh holds a theological degree from Harvard Divinity School and a law degree from Suffolk University. She has broad exposure to state finances and financial regulation. She served as Senate chairwoman of the Joint Committee on Taxation and the Joint Committee on Banks and Banking. She also led efforts in the Senate to force private, nonprofit organizations to open their books to the public.

Walsh had applied to Patrick's Judicial Nominating Commission to become a District Court judge. But she withdrew her name a year ago. The governor appointed her husband -- Paul V. Buckley, a retired District Court judge -- to the state's Industrial Accident Board, a post that pays $113,000 a year.


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## SinePari (Aug 15, 2004)

mikemac64 said:


> She could have just left.
> 
> What the article should have said was "Walsh, who would not address the controversy, has sought to exit the Senate for a few years*, landing softly in a do nothing, non-critical, high paying, state patronage job"*


The Senior Vice Chancellor Grand Poobah of UMass Lowell post was already filled by Marty Meehan (which is $280K/year, btw).


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## fra444 (Nov 23, 2008)

I sadly dont get Quinn. I have not stepped into the halls of higher learning except on a call or to run an errand. Now that being said even a dumb high school, (Voc School at that) knows you cant be overextended already and still keep throwing money at AL of your SO-CALLED FRIENDS!!! WTF?!


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## TRPDiesel (Nov 28, 2008)

I was looking at the Payroll Database that they throw in the faces of Troopers all the time... I found that it includes many other state agencies. Have you seen what these people at our State University make??? Here are the Top Porkies-
Download Data​DepartmentJob TitleNameStandard HoursAnnual Rate2007 Earnings







University of MassachusettsProfessorTreistman, Steven40$208,428.00$231,594.00Details University of MassachusettsAthletic CoachCahoon, Donald C40$210,357.00$231,696.00Details University of MassachusettsDistinguished Univ Prof,UMATowsley, Donald F.40$180,873.00$231,926.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorLesser, Victor R.40$181,896.00$233,272.00Details University of MassachusettsHead Football CoachBrown, Donald A40$194,606.00$233,476.00Details University of MassachusettsAsst ProfessorBrewer, Arthur40$60,587.00$233,505.00Details University of MassachusettsStaff AssociateMackenzie, David J.40$232,875.00$233,654.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorJacobson, Allan S40$251,000.00$234,799.00Details University of MassachusettsChairman of Department AMannino, Ronald C.40$148,520.00$235,519.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorAronin, Neil40$226,136.00$235,597.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorCryz, Stanley J40$167,921.00$238,095.00Details University of MassachusettsDistinguished ProfessorGierasch, Lila M40$189,894.00$243,580.00Details University of MassachusettsAssoc.Director MBLMorris, James K40$183,872.00$247,520.00Details University of MassachusettsVice Provost for ResearchSullivan, John L40$253,209.00$250,075.00Details University of MassachusettsChancellorMacCormack, Jean F.37.5$259,000.00$250,637.00Details University of MassachusettsVC, Administration & FinanceJenal, Robert E40$196,518.00$255,215.00Details University of MassachusettsAssoc VC & Chief Medical OffSteingard, Ronald J40$210,000.00$255,299.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorPape, Linda A40$60,587.00$255,673.00Details University of MassachusettsWilmer D. Barrett ProfessorMuthukumar, Murugappan40$197,843.00$256,215.00Details University of MassachusettsExec Dir,Ofc of Tech MgmtMcNamara, James P40$216,195.00$257,049.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorCroft, William B40$188,633.00$257,534.00Details University of MassachusettsAssoc ProfessorCuenoud, Henri28$42,411.00$259,361.00Details University of MassachusettsTemp Clerical ServicesReinisch, Bodo W20$104,811.00$260,088.00Details University of MassachusettsSenior Lecturer U of MTrafford, Pamela S40$103,034.00$260,600.00Details University of MassachusettsChairman of DepartmentMatthews, Charles Robert40$262,858.00$261,100.00Details University of MassachusettsChancellorMotley, James Keith40$240,000.00$261,557.00Details University of MassachusettsExecutive Vice PresidentJulian Jr, James R.40$309,596.00$261,839.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorAltieri, Dario C.40$265,749.00$264,869.00Details University of MassachusettsProvost/VC for Academic AffSeymour, Charlena M.40$272,595.00$265,037.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorStoff, Jeffrey S40$60,587.00$265,274.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorBisgaard-Frantzen, Soren40$230,871.00$266,846.00Details University of MassachusettsChairman of DepartmentReppert, Steven40$268,842.00$266,964.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorNakosteen, Robert A.40$134,297.00$271,447.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorGore, Joel M40$60,587.00$274,191.00Details University of MassachusettsDistinguished Univ Prof,UMARussell, Thomas P40$218,343.00$274,847.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorParaskos, John A40$60,587.00$280,016.00Details University of MassachusettsStaff AdministratorWilliams, Marcellette G40$265,828.00$284,617.00Details University of MassachusettsDean, Natural Science & MathLangford, George M40$239,861.00$284,807.00Details University of MassachusettsChairman of DepartmentStein, Gary S40$290,472.00$286,176.00Details University of MassachusettsAssoc ProfessorMoss, Lawrence J32$48,469.00$289,379.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorCzech, Michael P40$292,465.00$290,115.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorOckene, Ira S40$60,587.00$291,446.00Details University of MassachusettsVC & COO for Comm MedMurphy, Joyce A40$224,720.00$304,665.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorRossini, Aldo A40$300,000.00$309,260.00Details University of MassachusettsChief Information OfficerPeterson, Robert Paul40$241,449.00$322,820.00Details University of MassachusettsAssoc ProfessorPhillips, David A40$60,587.00$333,446.00Details University of MassachusettsExec Dep Chanc Provost & DeanFlotte, Terence R40$490,000.00$349,654.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorOkike, Nsidinanya40$60,587.00$367,103.00Details University of MassachusettsChairman of DepartmentRock, Kenneth L40$351,520.00$370,645.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorLong, Randall R40$60,587.00$384,552.00Details University of MassachusettsVC,DevelopmentPagnam, Charles J40$395,000.00$392,229.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorWoda, Bruce A40$60,587.00$396,671.00Details University of MassachusettsDeputy Chanc., Admin & FinStanton, Richard J40$251,884.00$399,002.00Details University of MassachusettsAssoc ProfessorHabib, Farajallah40$60,587.00$402,236.00Details University of MassachusettsPresident of Univ of MAWilson, Jack M40$425,000.00$403,000.00Details University of MassachusettsAsst ProfessorJehle, Frank40$60,587.00$403,703.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorIrwin, Richard Stephen40$60,587.00$412,695.00Details University of MassachusettsExec Dir,Mass BiologicsAmbrosino, Donna40$273,728.00$420,291.00Details University of MassachusettsDean EmeritusLazare, Aaron40$353,600.00$429,220.00Details University of MassachusettsDeputy ChancellorManning, Thomas D40$297,754.00$456,678.00Details University of MassachusettsInt Chancellor & SVP HLth SciCollins, Michael F40$490,000.00$483,039.00Details University of MassachusettsProfessorBalikian, Jerry P40$60,587.00$503,019.00Details University of MassachusettsAssociate Vice ChancellorAghababian, Richard V40$520,504.00$571,225.00Details University of MassachusettsAssociate Dean NRELovley, Derek R40$458,263.00$591,763.00Details   171 172 173 174 175 176 177 Records 17601-17664 of 17664
Massachusetts State Payroll Database - MassLive.com

It was actually neat and tidy until I posted it, sorry

It was actually neat and tidy until I posted it, sorry


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## Guest (Mar 16, 2009)

fra444 said:


> I sadly dont get Quinn. I have not stepped into the halls of higher learning except on a call or to run an errand.


If you listen to nothing else I ever tell you, go get at least your Associate's degree. Besides the bump in pay, it also goes on your pension, and even 10% is a lot of details you don't have to work.

A guy I was appointed with has nothing either, but he works anything and everything he's offered. My wife is astounded each year when his final salary isn't even close to mine, and I'm not a big worker.


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## rg1283 (Sep 14, 2005)

*From Commonwealth Unbound (not associated with the State):

March 13, 2009*

*An increasingly ordinary leader*

From "No Ordinary Leader" to "Business as Usual."

It's hard not to see that as the trajectory Gov. Deval Patrick is on after the latest slap in the face to those expecting more from an administration that pledged to sweep out the culture of patronage and cronyism on Beacon Hill. The new outrage: the appointment yesterday of state Sen. Marian Walsh as the $175,000-a-year assistant director of the Massachusetts Health and Educational Facilities Authority. 
HEFA, a quasi-public authority that helps nonprofit institutions finance capital projects, seemed to be functioning fine without anyone in the assistant director's position, which has been vacant for more than a dozen years. Yet the administration decided now was the time to fill the post -- with the state budget bleeding red ink and talk of new taxes very much in the air -- by handing the job to one of candidate Patrick's earliest backers in the Legislature. Walsh, a West Roxbury Democrat, has served stints as the Senate chair of the taxation and banking committees, but has no formal background or training in the world of nonprofit bonding and debt.

With the state budget for the rest of the current fiscal year alone now as much as $1 billion out of balance, even after previous cuts totaling $2.5 billion, nearly everyone realizes that some form of tax increase is coming, along with more huge cuts in spending. State leaders need residents to view the crisis as something we're all in together, but the tough times come at a time when public faith in state government is low -- and falling. Stories of outrageous pension abuses by one public official after another, plus corruption and ethics charges on Beacon Hill, are all feeding the distrust of an already cynical citizenry.

To secure any kind of buy-in on new taxes, state leaders have to show that they are serious about taking on sacred cows, ending time-honored practices that enrich the connected crowd, and sharing in the sacrifices they are asking of beleaguered taxpayers whose retirement accounts are in free-fall and whose jobs may be in jeopardy.

That's why Transportation Secretary Jim Aloisi's recent dismissal of Senate President Therese Murray's call for "reform before revenue" as a "meaningless slogan" seemed to be the most tin-eared comment that could possibly be made at this time. (And this from the insider who was hired, despite a Big Dig-stained background, because of his keen grasp of politics and state government?)

It's also why it struck such a raw nerve to see Patrick hire last month as the state's new $150,000-a-year "stimulus czar" a guy who gamed the state pension system for the kind of ridiculous windfall the governor has regularly decried as the sort of excess that must end.

News of the Walsh appointment came on the same day the _Globe _reported that ex-House speaker Sal DiMasi handed out a raft of pay raises and promotions to State House staffers on his way out the door. It's the kind of news story pairing that begins to make Patrick look much more like he's part of the problem on Beacon Hill than the cure.


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## OfficerObie59 (Sep 14, 2007)

As a constituent of the Senate Prez, I think the "Reform Before Revenue" slogan is probably the only smart thing that's ever come out of her pen.


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## MCADPD24 (Nov 7, 2008)

TRPDiesel said:


> I was looking at the Payroll Database that they throw in the faces of Troopers all the time... I found that it includes many other state agencies. Have you seen what these people at our State University make??? Here are the Top Porkies-
> Download Data​DepartmentJob TitleNameStandard HoursAnnual Rate2007 Earnings
> 
> 
> ...


That's all UMASS,

You forgot,

Katherin Sloan Mass Art $250,000, a car and a house all paid by the state.


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

Report: $60,000 For No Work State House Job









Sen. Ted Kennedy, Carol Aloisi, Gov. Deval Patrick in a photo from Aloisi's Facebook page.
WBZ

BOSTON (WBZ) ―Imagine this listing in the help wanted section:

_*Make more than $50,000 a year with full benefits for sitting in an empty State House office all day doing nothing.*_

Sounds sweet right?

Well there are some qualifications.

For a "job" like that you have to be politically connected and related to a high-ranking state official.

*According to the Boston Globe*, the sister of our Transportation Secretary had such a "no work job" until someone recently ratted her out.

The Globe says Carol Aloisi, the sister of Transportation Secretary James Aloisi had such a gig.

Her title was chief of staff, but she had no staff or boss and an office to herself.

Aloisi is politically connected.

She had a *Facebook page*, in which she posts photos of herself with Gov. Deval Patrick, Sen. Ted Kennedy, and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The page was down as of Tuesday afternoon.

She had been working for Springfield state Rep. Cheryl Coakley-Rivera.

But Coakley-Rivera told the Globe Aloisi's job performance was "extremely disappointing" before she went out with a back injury missing several months of work.

Despite all this, she was one of the State House aides who got a three percent pay raise last summer.

Carol Aloisi has not returned a request from WBZ for comment.

Seth Gitell, spokesman for House Speaker Bob DeLeo, emailed this statement to WBZ:

_"Personnel decisions for matters prior to January 28 were entirely the purview of previous speaker. Under the current House Speaker, the employee in question has served in the offices of Rep. (Garrett) Bradley (of Hingham) and the first-term representatives. Staff assignments for her as well as other employees are still being made."

"Given the strain the state's families are under, I am committed to serious reform and profound cuts across state government before considering any new revenue items. I have targeted the reform of our ethics, pension and transportation systems. We will pass legislation in these areas soon.

"Let me be clear: there will be painful cuts ahead and the difficult work of reforming the entrenched inefficiencies in state government."_

What do you think?

Join the conversation in our *Conversation Nation blog*.

Are you curious about who makes what at the State House?


*2008 Mass. State Payroll, sorted by Pay*

*2008 Mass. State Payroll, sorted by Name*

*2008 Mass. State Payroll, sorted by Department*

Report: $60,000 For No Work State House Job - wbztv.com


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## SinePari (Aug 15, 2004)

Printing salaries of the officers who stand over pot holes dodging traffic for extra money mobilizes an entire legislature to reform detail policies. But this lazy hack stole money from us and will still be employed with bennies until the day she dies.


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

Patrick Labels Recent Patronage Stories `Trivial'









Patrick says he has tried to learn how to focus on the meaningful, but he has realized he's now in a profession "where that is completely upside down." 
WBZ

BOSTON (WBZ) ― Gov. Deval Patrick says recent stories about *costly jobs for legislators*, *Cabinet family members* and administration employees are "trivial" and won't distract him from his focus on big issues.

The comment was in response to a question about his credibility on reform.

The governor, a one-time attorney, told WBZ's Jon Keller and other reporters during a news conference Thursday he has tried to learn how to focus on the meaningful, but he has realized he's now in a profession "where that is completely upside down."








Watch: *Patrick's statement*

In one example, Patrick said he was concentrating on a comprehensive overhaul of the state's transportation system.

"That's going to make a difference economically, in terms of quality of life, long after I have left this job," he said.

Patrick engineered a $175,000 state agency job for *Sen. Marian Walsh*. The sister of Transportation Secretary James Aloisi worked for six months as chief of staff in an office with no employees.

And the Massachusetts Turnpike recently added two $100,000 employees despite a restriction on hiring only "critical" workers.

Meanwhile, the state's unemployment rate rose to 7.8 percent last month. 

Patrick Labels Recent Patronage Stories `Trivial' - wbztv.com


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## 8MORE (Nov 25, 2008)

Doing his level best to guarantee he becomes a one term Governor.


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*Deval Patrick cries uncle on 'trivial' problems*








*By Hillary Chabot 
*Wednesday, March 25, 2009









Photo by Angela Rowlings 
FACE TIME: Gov. Deval Patrick talks with the media yesterday at the State House.

*What a stupid smirk that needs to be whipped off **his face*

Buckling under public outrage, Gov. *Deval Patrick* moved to stem the political damage from his pick of a state senator to a pricey plum job even as a Herald review found she is joining an agency where free health club memberships and car allowances are accepted perks.
Sen. Marian Walsh (D-West Roxbury) announced she would forgo the $175,000 salary and take only $120,000 instead as the new assistant executive director at the Health and Educational Facilities Authority, a job that's been vacant for 12 years.
Patrick - vowing to look at inflated salaries and perks at the Bay State's 52 quasi-independent agencies - said he was wrong to label the Walsh controversy and a series of other excesses amid hard economic times as "trivial."
"Uncle, uncle," Patrick said. "I wish I never uttered that."
A Herald review found that Walsh won't be the only well-compensated executive at the obscure HEFA office.
Benson Caswell, who began as executive director at HEFA in 2002, has a contract stuffed with benefits including a $5,000 car allowance, free health club membership, T pass, cell phone and parking spot at HEFA's prime downtown Boston office.
HEFA, which is financed by nonprofit groups seeking help obtaining government funding, also covers 100 percent of Caswell's health and dental coverage, and he also has a nearly $500,000 severance package if his contract is terminated, according to documents.
One-third of HEFA's staff earns six-figure salaries, with Caswell taking in $225,000 a year. Caswell did not return a call for comment, but HEFA spokesman Liam Sullivan called Caswell "a highly qualified individual with years of public sector experience who was brought on to help people thrive, and he has done that."
Patrick said Walsh's initial high pay "raises a question about the range," but he would not say whether he believes her new $120,000 salary is reasonable.
"I believe this is an important job and I have a lot of confidence she will get it done," he said.
"What we're hearing from people is serious concern about that much money for this position in these times," the governor said. "It really does beg the question about the whole compensation stucture."
But Senate Minority Leader Richard Tisei (R-Wakefield) said, "If he were serious about eliminating waste and patronage in state government, he would have rescinded the job offer that was made (to Walsh)."
Patrick called for an immediate ban on all quasi-public contracts like Caswell's and a suspension of pending pay raises until a review is complete.
Several other quasi-independent agencies offer budget-busting salaries to their executive diectors, such as Robert Culver at MassDevelopment, who earns $280,000 a year.

(64) Comments | Post / Read Comments

Deval Patrick cries uncle on 'trivial' problems - BostonHerald.com


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## TRPDiesel (Nov 28, 2008)

“I believe this is an important job and I have a lot of confidence she will get it done,” he said.

Really? That is why it went unfilled for a dozen years


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## MCADPD24 (Nov 7, 2008)

I hope Shitptrick is only a one term governor. If he's elected to another term im leaving this state


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## MCADPD24 (Nov 7, 2008)

Contradicting a series of steadfast denials, internal e-mails show that Governor Deval Patrick's top aides controlled the appointment of state Senator Marian Walsh to a high-paying job at a state authority, from setting her salary to crafting her job description.
DiscussCOMMENTS (1)

They also provided the agency's talking points for the news media in an attempt to quell a public uproar.
"I'm going to send you a proposed job description from [Patrick chief of staff Doug Rubin] soon," Patrick senior adviser Jay Gonzalez told the two top officials at the Massachusetts Health and Education Facilities Authority in a March 11 e-mail.
As of late this week, one of those officials, HEFA chairman Allen Larson, continued to say that the push to hire Walsh came from the authority.
"I would deny that," he said when asked if the Patrick administration engineered the hiring. "We have been looking for the additional staff expertise since I got on the board. We have been working with the administration to figure that out. But I do not consider this an orchestrated matter."
The e-mails indicate, however, that Larson and his staff worked closely with Gonzalez, Patrick's undersecretary of administration and finance, in the days leading up to the board's decision on March 12 to hire Walsh as a $175,000 a year assistant executive director. (After Patrick's action kicked up a political firestorm, Walsh requested this week that the salary be reduced to $120,000.)
The e-mails were released to the Globe after a public records request.
The salary level of $175,000 originated with the administration, the e-mails indicate. They also show that Rubin drafted Walsh's job description. Patrick's press office wrote the script for public statements by the agency.
On the weekend before the Patrick-controlled HEFA board unanimously approved Walsh's appointment as assistant director, Larson asked Gonzalez to justify why the Democratic lawmaker should be paid more than $128,500. That was the amount that a Burlington-based consulting firm, The Survey Group, reported as the average market base pay for the position.
Larson asked Gonzalez to contact Rubin for backup information that would support a $175,000 salary.
"Generally, it's lower than the $175,000 figure," Larson wrote to Gonzalez, referring to the consultant's survey of pay at other government agencies. "It would be helpful if Doug or others could send along some comparables so that we have substantive justifications."
There is no e-mail that describes how the administration responded, but other documents show that after the board vote, the agency's executive director, Benson Caswell, wrote Walsh offering her the job at the $175,000 salary. Another document shows Walsh's total salary package, which includes retirement benefits and healthcare coverage, would have totaled $242,442.
The appointment, coming amid talk of tax and toll hikes, has generated public anger directed at Patrick, who ran for election in 2006 as a reformer vowing to end patronage hiring on Beacon Hill. In the face of the criticism, Patrick has said the deputy director job at HEFA needed to be filled, even though it has been vacant for 12 years.Patrick's director of communications, Joseph Landolfi, said yesterday in response to the evidence in the e-mails that Patrick's staff acted appropriately. He said the contacts involved "personnel decisions with chairman Larson that related to HEFA's role in supporting the governor's economic development agenda."
DiscussCOMMENTS (1)

The e-mails about the salary also contradict statements from Walsh, a West Roxbury Democrat and one of Patrick's earliest political supporters. Walsh said this week that the authority had proposed the $175,000 salary after looking at the compensation levels of other, similar agencies.
"They made the offer based on a due diligence," she said after announcing she wanted the salary reduced to $120,000 in wake of the public outrage over her appointment.
The records also reveal that Gonzalez needed clearance from the governor's senior staff on several of the major issues.
The day before the board meeting where Walsh was formally selected, Gonzalez told Caswell that Rubin would create the job description that would be presented to the board. Caswell had already written and sent to Gonzalez a two-page job description for an assistant executive director. But that job description outlined duties that included working to develop new projects and procure new financing, expertise that Walsh did not possess.
The revised description, which is one paragraph, focused her duties on government-relations work, including merging the agency with the Massachusetts Development Authority, and not on tax exempt capital financing.
Gonzalez also edited a draft e-mail that Larson wrote for board members, telling them that Walsh had been "nominated" for the job and that her hiring would be taken up at the Thursday meeting.
"I think this is great," Gonzalez told Larson late Sunday afternoon after reading his final draft of the statement. "I have forwarded it on to a couple of others internally and asked them to get back to me by the end of the day today if they have any concerns."
As the story of Walsh's appointment unfolded, the governor's press operation was in close touch with Liam Sullivan, who handles media relations for the authority.
On the day the board voted to hire Walsh, Patrick's deputy press secretary, Rebecca Deusser, e-mailed Sullivan directing him to release a joint statement by Larson and Caswell praising Walsh as highly qualified for the job. Deusser had written most of the two-sentence statement.
Sullivan was also in constant touch with Patrick's press office, getting approval for talking points for dealing with reporters and providing it with information on press inquiries he was getting. Landolfi said his press office became involved the day the board hired Walsh. The "sole purpose" he said was to coordinate "who responds to various media inquiries ensuring that responses were accurate."
The governor's hiring of Walsh has prompted some who have worked with independent state authorities to sharply criticize the intrusion of political influence on the agencies. David T. Hannan, a former chairman of the authority, said the appointment is a breach in the legislative intent to create independent authorities that would be insulated from political pressures or become patronage dumping grounds.
"That is political mischief," said Hannan. "The Legislature created the authorities to avoid this kind of political mischief."


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## SinePari (Aug 15, 2004)

MCADPD24 said:


> David T. Hannan, a former chairman of the authority, said the appointment is a breach in the legislative intent to create independent authorities that would be insulated from political pressures or become patronage dumping grounds.
> "That is political mischief," said Hannan. "The Legislature created the authorities *to avoid* this kind of political mischief."


On the contrary. The Authorities were created SOLEY for the purpose of being patronage dumping grounds, thus operating outside of any civil service hiring standards.


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## Guest (Mar 28, 2009)

SinePari said:


> On the contrary. The Authorities were created SOLEY for the purpose of being patronage dumping grounds, thus operating outside of any civil service hiring standards.


Anyone else remember the hackerama frenzy at the MA Convention Center Authority when Billy Bulger was senate president?


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## SinePari (Aug 15, 2004)

Delta784 said:


> Anyone else remember the hackerama frenzy at the MA Convention Center Authority when Billy Bulger was senate president?


MCA, UMass, MassPort...whatever, it's all the same people at the trough.


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## MCADPD24 (Nov 7, 2008)

BOSTON - State Sen. Marian Walsh says she won't accept a controversial state agency job that has drawn criticism in a time of state budget problems.
Walsh, appearing with Gov. *Deval Patrick* at a Statehouse news conference, said Tuesday she is withdrawing from the appointment as assistant director at the Massachusetts Health and Education Facilities Authority. The job had been vacant for 12 years.
Walsh said she feels she has become the issue, not the mission she was asked to take on.

Her hiring March 12 by the agency's board has drawn allegations of patronage against Patrick and stirred anger in a down economy.
Before stepping aside, Walsh had asked that the job's $175,000 salary be cut to $120,000. She makes about half that as a legislator.
Patrick said Tuesday he takes reponsibility for the handling of the appointment.
State Sen. Marian Walsh withdraws from controversial job - BostonHerald.com


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## kwflatbed (Dec 29, 2004)

*Deval Patrick's hackapalooza*

*Four Patrick administration staffers land in big-bucks gigs*








*By Hillary Chabot*
Thursday, April 2, 2009

Gov. *Deval Patrick* has stashed four staffers in big-bucks jobs at several of the quasi-public agencies he is now vowing to reform - including one post worth a jaw-dropping $190,000 a year, the Herald has learned.
Patrick ordered up a probe of salaries at quasi-public agencies last week as taxpayer outrage peaked over his tapping of Sen. Marian Walsh for a long-vacant $175,000-a-year post with the Massachusetts Health and Educational Facilities Authority.
But four Patrick administration staffers have landed at quasi-public agencies:
Pat Cloney, a former director under Patrick's administration at the Massachusetts office of business development, as the $190,000-a-year interim executive director at a newly created agency called the Clean Energy Center.
Michael Morris, Patrick's legislative liaison, as the $119,000a-year public relations director at the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority.
Edwin Carr, former chief of staff at the economic development department, as the $110,000-a-year executive director at the Massachusetts Office of International Trade and Investment.
Chuck Anderson, who served as Patrick's policy director, as a $95,000-a-year senior adviser with the Massachusetts Technology Collaboration.
"I guess the dirty little secret in Massachusetts is that these quasis aren't independent at all. They are very much taking their cues from the governor's office," said Sen. Richard R. Tisei (R-Wakefield). "These are plum patronage positions that the governor has at his disposal."
Walsh, a Patrick political backer, abandoned her post Tuesday.
Administration officials defended the other appointments.
Cloney was appointed to his post at the Clean Energy Center in December. Created as part of the Green Jobs Act in 2008, the agency authorizes state grants for non-profits working on clean-energy technology.
There were no other candidates for the position, said Robert Keough, a spokesman for the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs, and Cloney was selected by a board including key Patrick Cabinet members.
Cloney's position was created by the Legislature, but the statute, which Patrick signed in 2008, did not specify the salary.
Cloney worked previously as vice president at Susquehanna Capital Management, where he managed four portfolio companies, and as a partner at Clear Power Ventures, where he focused on early stage energy.
At the MWRA, administration officials noted that Morris is paid thousands less than the previous public relations director. Officials called Carr's business development appointment a lateral move. The salary is equal to Carr's former post.
At MassTech, spokeswoman Emily Dahl said the agency received "zero pressure from the governor's office to hire Mr. Anderson. He has a unique combination of state policy experience and expertise in international law. He was perfect for this job and we are lucky to have him."

Deval's hackerama:

+ Marian Walsh: I never saw 'tsunami' coming

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*Next Article in Local Politics:*
*To Deval Patrick's relief, Marian Walsh gives up post*

Deval Patrick's hackapalooza - BostonHerald.com


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