uaxcntry wrote:
where did you find these salaries? can you provide a link?
I can't remember the link, however if you do enough different key word searches, you will come up with it. They are from a private website that uses Public Disclosure laws to attain and post public salaries for the state of Washington. The site actually has every department and office in the State listed, as well as many of the cities and counties. It's been up for several years. I found those figures some time last year, I think. The site seems to be a year behind on it's information. So you can't find current salaries.
It is also of note that while they list salaries, they don't list benefits and bonuses. A coach at a big Pac-10 school may have a certain base salary, which is listed, but they often also get bonuses for team performance and stuff like that. It also wouldn't indicate if they get a car, or other budget line items that directly benefit the coach.
Not surprisingly, even though state salaries are public domain, the states rarely make an effort to make those statistics accessable. I guess that is why the Washington information is on a private website and why it isn't easy or possible to find many other states salary statistics online. I'm sure there are many state officials that would rather not have the public realizing what they make.
Oh, and while I am not a lawyer, due to public disclosure laws there is a pretty good chance there is a way for anyone to contact their state government and request this type of information. I think they have to provide it to you. So you might contact them, by phone or e-mail, and request specific state salaries. If you do, post it on here. It's very interesting stuff!