A state auditjust released by New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli is critical of the compensation programs used for top executives at the Rochester Regional Transportation Authority.
DiNapoli says that those executives collected 57 percent of the authority’s salary bonuses over a three-year period, because the RGRTA rewarded collective achievements instead of individual efforts. For the the three years ending in March, the Authority distributed a total of $1.8 million in bonuses. The state comptroller’s office says that about $1 million of that went to upper management.
In a letter responding to the audit, RGRTA Chairman James Redmond says the audit does not show that their system of incentives is in violation of any existing laws or legal opinions. Redmond contends that the Comptroller’s office is trying to use the audit process to draw “false and misleading conclusions” and he says that the authority is recognized across the country for its innovation and customer focus.
Redmond says their incentive system forces management to concentrate on areas the board has determined to be the Authority’s priorities.