Legislators rip call-back pay given to Miller’s chauffeur

Thursday, Jan. 30, 1997 | 5:01 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- Gov. Bob Miller's chauffeur is taking home $20,000 to $30,000 in extra pay a year, putting him on a par with top administrators in state government.

Some members of the Assembly Ways and Means Committee are upset. Committee Chairman Morse Arberry, D-Las Vegas, said Angelo Webster, a Nevada Highway Patrol trooper, "might be making more than the governor."

"Some people on welfare don't make that much," Arberry said of Webster's overtime pay. His remarks came as the committee delved into the issue of overtime, call-back time and standby time for state workers.

A legislative audit, issued in December, said that in fiscal year 1995, Webster reported 758 hours in times he was called back to the job after his regular shift. For that he earned an extra $21,261. And he received $10,000 in overtime pay, pushing his salary to close to $75,000.

He earned about the same amount in 1994 and, according to committee sources, his extra pay is up to around $30,000 for fiscal 1996.

Assemblywoman Jan Evans, D-Sparks, said this call-back pay is "far out of kilter and it should have been caught by someone."

"There is a clear breakdown in oversight here," Evans said.

But a spokesman for Miller said the governor's schedule dictates the hours worked by Webster. Miller's press secretary, Richard Urey, said the governor's schedule changes two or three times a week. "When you sign on for duty, you are not going to be living a normal life."

The issue arose during discussion of the state payroll system, which is run by the state Personnel Department. Administrative Services Officer Judy Holt told the committee the responsibility for catching excessive overtime or call-back times rests with the agency involved. "We rely on the agency to review this," she said.

Webster is a lieutenant in the Nevada Highway Patrol who serves as the driver for Miller and also heads up the Dignitary Protection Unit, which is a handful of officers who provide security for the governor's mansion.

Call-back pay comes when a person ends his shift and two or more hours later is summoned to return. One person familiar with the audit said it appears that Webster is frequently called at 8 p.m., exactly two hours after he leaves work.

Call backs are reimbursed at time-and-a-half, the same as overtime. But call-back time is credited to retirement benefits. So with the higher pay for call-backs, Webster will be pulling down a far bigger pension, possibly as high as $10,000 to $15,000 more a year.

Evans said the state has "got to tighten up" on these practices.

Arberry said the call-back pay for Webster stands out because another chauffeur only worked 278 extra hours compared with 758 for Webster. That individual got an extra $7,541 for fiscal 1995.

Webster's name was not mentioned during the committee meeting and Holt said she did not know the identity of the person who made this extra money. But questioned later, committee members confirmed Webster was the individual.

In addition to the 758 hours of call-back pay, he received 2,378 hours in stand-by pay, the auditors said, which nets about a dollar an hour. They said the issue when to record call-back or overtime needs to be spelled out in the regulation because of the potential for abuse. And it said clarification is needed on whether an employee can be paid for call-back on the same day he is also on stand-by status.

"We're trying to get a handle on this and see if the message gets across to this employee," Arberry said. "We wanted to get the message out that we don't appreciate whoever it is that may be abusing the system."

Urey said Webster's time sheets are reviewed by Col. Mike Hood, who heads the Nevada Highway Patrol.

Urey said there is a lot more to the job than just driving Miller around. He supervises five people at the mansion, is involved in training, accompanies the governor when he travels out of state and sets up security arrangements for visiting dignitaries.