As Rockland County government continues to struggle with a growing deficit, County Executive C. Scott Vanderhoef announced Thursday evening that he was voluntarily reducing his annual salary by five percent.
Vanderhoef acknowledged even though the county legislature has voted to support his proposed contingenecy budget, additional financial reductions must be made.
Vanderhoef earns $155,087 annually, the reduction will cut that by $7,754.
“This will not heal our budgetary wounds, but I want to lead by example," Vanderhoef said. "This gesture will hopefully encourage others to take similar steps to help the County deal with our serious financial woes."
He went onto to say that the credit agencies are watching the county closely. Moody's Investors Service . Vanderhoef said he hoped his action would signal to Moody's "that we are ready and willing to make difficult financial decisions.”
Part of Vanderhoef's plan for cutting the included the elimination of 150 jobs across departments. Other measures were the creation of a tax on utility usage and community college chargebacks to towns and villages for residents attending community colleges outside Rockland and fees for Board of Elections services.
