Top paid state employees of California unmasked as prison shrinks, top cops and financiers

California’s highest-paid employees are a little-known cadre of pension managers, prison workers and patrolmen who pull in as much as $2 million in total compensation on the taxpayer dime, records reveal.

The top-earning state worker last year was Stephen Gilmore, chief investment officer at the California Public Employees Retirement System, who netted $2.36 million in total compensation, including a $720,608 salary, nearly $100,000 in benefits and a whopping $1.5 million in “other pay.”

Stephen Gilmore serves as CalPERS’ chief investment officer and earned more than $2 million. CalPERS

The publicly available pay data was compiled by the San Francisco Chronicle.

The approximately 250 state workers who made more than $600,000 were largely concentrated in two of California’s massive pension systems — the Public Employees Retirement System and the Teachers’ Retirement System — along with the California Highway Patrol and the Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Arnold B. Phillips is managing investment director at CalPERS. CalPERS
The California State Capitol. Getty Images

Although Gilmore was the only state worker earning over $2 million in total comp, several other pension bosses netted well over $1 million last year thanks to “other pay,” which can include performance-based bonuses.

Managing director Arnold Phillips took home $1.73 million, including $1 million in “other pay,” while deputy investment chief Daniel Bienvenue and executive officer Marcie Frost each earned $1.6 million.

Tai Vong, former chief of the California Highway Patrol. Linkedin

CalPERS is the largest public employees’ retirement system in the United States, with over $600 billion in assets.

California prison shrinks are also bringing home some serious dough.

Samita Gandhi, a staff psychiatrist at Corrections and Rehabilitation, was that department’s highest-paid worker with $873,872 in total comp. Chief psychiatrist Olivia Del Pilar and staff shrink Damon Walcott weren’t far behind it $841,878 and $822,971, respectively.

Tai Vong, chief of the California Highway Patrol who retired one year ago, made an eye-popping $914,554 in total comp in his final year — including a “lump sum” payment of $398,000. His fellow chiefs James Mann and Donald Goodbrand earned $838,272 and $824,122 and one sergeant, Leonard Tomboc, earned $812,678.

Another outlier was Vernon Steiner, who runs the State Compensation Insurance Fund. His taxpayer-backed earnings last year were $1.2 million, including a $702,791 annual base salary.

Vernon Steiner, President and CEO of the State Compensation Insurance Fund.. IIABCal

Ian Choudri, who’s in charge of California’s embattled High Speed Rail project, also earned a pretty penny at $638,943 in compensation last year.

Ian Choudri was appointed as Chief Executive Officer for the California High-Speed Rail Authority in August 2024. State of California

Departments with the worst-compensated workers include Motor Vehicles and Veterans Affairs — both of which have median wages under $71,000, according to the Chronicle’s analysis. 

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