The New York Police Department's former chief is making nearly half a million dollars per year due to a legal loophole that allows him to collect a pension and a taxpayer-funded salary at the same time.
Retired Chief Terence Monahan collects $188,280 from his annual pension but also receives a $242,592 annual salary as Mayor Bill de Blasio's new senior advisor. The 60-year-old is also owed nearly $300,000 for unused days off.
Employees, who work in the public sector, are usually required to file a 211 waiver in order to collect a salary if they are retired, under 65-years-old, and currently collecting a pension. According to state law, retirees who fail to file the waiver are limited to an annual salary of $35,000.
Monahan was able to avoid filing a waiver by being placed on the payroll of the city-funded nonprofit organization, the Economic Development Corporation (EDC). Individuals collecting a pension do not need to file a waiver if they are employed by a public benefit corporation.
The former cop's new job with the EDC came amid New York City's Civilian Complaint Review Board's investigation into complaints of NYPD's aggressive tactics during the George Floyd protests. In her lawsuit against the NYPD, New York Attorney General Letitia James accused Monahan of encouraging and participating in the department's unlawful behavior during the protests.
Despite criticism from police and City Hall sources, the mayor and Monahan have denied that his new job had any connection to the CCRB's investigation or James' lawsuit.
"Former Chief of Department Terry Monahan spent nearly 40 years in the NYPD and led the city's groundbreaking neighborhood policing strategy, as well as the department's historically successful CompStat," said DCPI spokeswoman Sgt. Jessica McRorie. "His vast public safety and leadership experience made him the right person to bring city agencies together, including the New York City Police Department, to help ensure recovery from the pandemic."
Source: NY Post
