Las Vegas Sun

March 28, 2024

Titus drew university pay while in Carson City

While on the payroll as a political science professor at UNLV, Senate Minority Leader Dina Titus spent three days in Carson City in January and conducted other legislative duties for which she was paid, according to state and university records.

Titus, D-Las Vegas, drew her university pay until she took leave without pay for the legislative session on Feb. 7.

But UNLV officials said Titus did nothing improper, and there's no need to correct her pay records for the university time she worked between Jan. 10 -- the date professors had to report before classes on Jan. 18 -- through Feb. 4.

Titus, a Democratic candidate for governor, didn't teach classes during the spring semester and her numerous responsibilities during the four weeks she was paid didn't fit into a 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday regimen, university officials said.

UNLV's handling of Titus' work schedule contrasts sharply with Henderson's, where Deputy Police Chief Richard Perkins, a likely Democratic gubernatorial candidate, had four errors corrected on his time cards this year when he was credited with working a full day for the city when he was in Carson City the same day serving as Assembly speaker.

UNLV spokeswoman Hilarie Grey said professors under contract, such as Titus, can't be compared to municipal employees who may be expected to work more of a set schedule.

"It is not unusual for professors to be there (at school) until 9 or 10 o'clock at night," Grey said. "The work schedule varies as long as you are meeting your obligations to teaching, research, and sitting on committees. It is not unusual to do some business remotely."

While drawing her $9,951 a month salary from UNLV as part of a nine-month contract, Titus left Las Vegas shortly after noon on Jan. 24 and flew to Carson City for the State of the State address. After participating in budget subcommittee meetings on Jan. 25 and 26, Titus returned to Las Vegas just after 5 p.m. on Jan. 26, according to her travel records with the Legislative Counsel Bureau.

While in Las Vegas on Jan. 31, Feb. 1 and Feb. 2, Titus participated in three meetings of the budget subcommittee that ran each day from 8:30 a.m. until 5 p.m, state records show.

For all three days in Carson City and Las Vegas, Titus received state pay of $130 a day, according to state records. As she has done since she has served in the state Senate since 1989, Titus took leave without pay from her UNLV professorship once the regular session started Feb. 7.

Titus campaign manager Dave Barnhart said she did nothing improper in doing her state work while she's getting paid by the university, prior to the start of the session. He said it's consistent with past practices in which she can conduct legislative duties and university responsibilities because she has such a flexible schedule, especially when she's not teaching any classes.

Titus even does university work while in Carson City and has flown back to Las Vegas for university work at her own expense, Barnhart said.

"Dina doesn't have a 9 to 5 job," Barnhart said. "Often times she will be working to midnight or 1 o'clock. She's meeting her obligations to the people of Nevada and the university. Voters have consistently re-elected her and said what a wonderful job she has done. Her employer has been pleased and impressed with her performance."

Titus has unsuccessfully pushed for legislation that would require government employees, as she does, take a leave without pay from their job while they serve in the Legislature.

Showing her integrity, Barnhart said, Titus has adhered to that standard that has cost her more than $180,000 in pay. He said, however, there's nothing wrong with Titus getting paid to attend state meetings outside of the legislative session while she is drawing a university pay check. Barnhart said she earned that money by attending the meetings and even turned down pay if she had to leave meetings early.

Mehran Tamadonfar, chairman of the UNLV political science department, said he has no problem with Titus working as a lawmaker while she is serving as a professor at the same time. He said she hasn't missed teaching political science classes because of her state duties and her university responsibilities in January and early February didn't conform to a time clock or set schedule.

"As long as she doesn't miss class and does her research and service, I don't have a problem," Tamadonfar said. "I want to see a product at the end. People may see this job as 8 to 5, but that's not the way it is.

"Many things happen at night or on weekends or through e-mail. We have had a good talk, and she clearly understands what the rules are. She knows the expectations and has never let me down in that respect."

In January, Tamadonfar said, Titus started work on a state-funded internship program in which UNLV students work as paid interns for lawmakers in Carson City and earn class credit. Titus reviewed applications from students and helped select the six choices. She also prepared students to work in Carson City where she served as their supervisor during the legislative session and graded them even though she wasn't being paid by UNLV, Tamadonfar said.

In January Titus served on a search committee screening applications for hiring a professor, Tamadonfar said. She also served as a mentor for a new faculty member and on an ongoing basis conducts research that is reflected in articles in public policy journals or presentations to academic conferences, he said.

During the spring semester, Titus also served on thesis committees for the political science and ethics and policy master's programs in which she would review students' work, again even when she wasn't paid by the school.

Primarily when she returned from the session in June, she worked on a personnel committee, evaluating professors for merit pay and tenure, Tamadonfar said.

Handling all of those particular responsibilities didn't require Titus to be on campus at regular times throughout the week, Tamadonfar said. He said the university gets more than its money's worth from Titus.

Tamadonfar said Titus' students have benefitted from her practical experience in politics and often tell him that. He said there's been no problem with any blurring of her research and political career. She only gets credit in her annual evaluation for writings and work as a academic and not those of a politician.

"It is not unusual in academic life to be involved in the political field," Tamadonfar said. "It helps a lot to bring practical politics to academic research. It is my job to assess the academic quality of that research. If she writes something as a politician, that is not research."

For the fall semester, Tamadonfar said, Titus is assigned to teach two advanced political science classes, one on Nevada and one on national politics. Tamadonfar said he laid out his expectations to Titus and doesn't expect any problems as usual.

"I don't tolerate people missing class, and if she was assigned to teach a class, she would have to be here," Tamadonfar said. "If she doesn't sleep at all and goes and campaigns, that would be OK with me."

Barnhart said Titus is 100 percent committed to the governor's race and has spent 60 to 70 hours a week campaigning over the summer. Titus, who doesn't officially have to report to UNLV until Aug. 22 for the start of classes on Aug. 29, is obligated to UNLV and won't miss any classes to campaign, Barnhart said.

Titus is also scheduled to teach classes for the spring semester that runs from January through May, Tamadonfar said. The university granted Titus leave for the legislative sessions because the political science department could plan in advance, he said. If suddenly Titus were to request leave without pay for the spring semester, he said she may not get it.

"I have to look at my needs, and it's not automatically granted," Tamadonfar said.

Barnhart said Titus is taking it one semester at a time and she's made no decision on whether she will teach during the spring semester.

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