Records show majority of Chatham County employees earn more than $40,000
Katie NussbaumFrom the county attorney and county managers to public safety officials and department directors, 72 Chatham County employees currently have salaries that top $100,000 per year. Out of the 1,895 county employees, more than 900 of them make more than $40,000 per year.
The Savannah Morning News obtained the county salary data through an Open Records Request. The initial request was made in March and complete data was received last week.
More salary data:Records show majority of City of Savannah employees make more than $40,000
The list includes the Chatham County Police Department, Chatham County Sheriff’s Office, Chatham Emergency Management Agency and the local court system.
Chatham County Attorney Jonathan Hart is the highest paid employee at $265,320 followed by County Manager Lee Smith at $235,100. Assistant managers Michael Kaigler and Linda Cramer make $218,977 and $195,029, respectively.
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Chatham County Chief of Police Jeff Hadley makes $176,286 per year while Assistant Police Chiefs Terry Shoop and Julia Tolbert both make $118,924. Salaries of the five captains, which round out the command staff, range from $84,548 to $97,481.
The salaries of the 22 police sergeants employed by Chatham County Police range from $56,287 to $71,673. Police officer recruits all make $38,000. Salaries of the captains and corporals and lieutenants range from $50,173 to $97,481.
Chatham County Sheriff John Wilcher makes $151,229 per year and Chief Deputy Sheriff William Freeman makes $154,940. The 33 deputy sergeant salaries range from $55,460 to $74,079. Salaries for recruits range from $38,000 to $39,140.
Dennis Jones, who serves as director of the Chatham Emergency Management Agency, makes $120,082 per year while Assistant Director Randall Matthews makes $80,491.
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Chatham County Commission Chairman Chester Ellis makes $65,772 while fellow commission members Helen Stone and Pat Farrell make $31,504. Dean Kicklighter makes $30,061 followed by Bobby Lockett at $29,356. First time members Tanya Milton, Aaron Whitely, Larry Rivers and Kenneth Adams all make $27,328 per year.
On the web
Go to Savannahnow.com to search the entire Chatham County salary database
More:Chatham County Jail's backlog costs taxpayers $6.76 million and counting
Katie Nussbaum is the city and county government reporter for the Savannah Morning News. Contact her at knussbaum@savannahnow.com. Twitter: KmartSMN