7 Borough and 3 Board of Education Officials Have Annual Pensions of More Than $100,000

New Jersey Watchdog, http://newjersey.watchdog.org, has published two articles under the heading Where Does the Buck Stop for NJ Pensions?  The first, posted on April 2, 2012 at http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2012/04/02/100k-club, is titled $100K New Jersey Pensions 'Club' State Retirement Funds. 

The list of retirees receiving pensions in excess of $100,000 arranged by pension amount, from highest to lowest, is available at http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2012/04/03/100k-sidebar/.  Ranked 34 is retired Englewood Cliffs Police Chief Thomas Bauernschmidt with an annual pension of $143,604.  Ranked 59 is another retired Englewood Cliffs police chief, Lawrence Whiting, with an annual pension of $137,155.  People who have lived in Englewood Cliffs for a while may remember that Mayor Joseph C. Parisi, Jr. skipped over two higher ranking police officers to promote then-lieutenant Bauernschmidt to police chief and that former Police Chief Whiting held back applications for the position of patrolman for then-Councilwoman Patricia Drimones' two sons, current Patrolman Nicholas Drimones and recent police dispatcher candidate Christian Drimones.  (see March 15, 2012 post)

Also on the list from the Borough of Englewood Cliffs are:  retired police inspector William Gallagher receiving $120,939, retired police captain George Murray receiving $120,030, retired police captain Martin Barrett receiving $114,840, retired police lieutenant Douglas Speidel receiving $106,350, and retired police chief Patrick Farley receiving $105,047.  In contrast, the New Jersey State Police officer with the highest pension receives $97,897 according to $100K New Jersey Pensions 'Club' State Retirement Funds, http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2012/04/02/100k-club. 

In addition, three Englewood Cliffs Board of Education retirees are on the list of those receiving pensions in excess of $100,000:  retired Superintendent of Schools Philomena Pezzano, receiving $119,733, Marion Luthin receiving $114,712, and retired principal Joseph Spano receiving $113,047. 

In a follow up article posted on April 12, 2012, New Jersey Watchdog lists those receiving pensions in excess of $100,000 by last employer.  The article, titled Paterson & Hoboken Lead NJ in 100K Pensions for Retirees, http://newjersey.watchdog.org/2012/04/12/6227, indicates that the Borough of Englewood Cliffs has the same number of retirees receiving more than $100,000 -- seven -- as the City of Englewood and more than the Boroughs of Tenafly and Fort Lee.