This website was created to raise awareness of the unfair financial burden placed on the citizens of Tuolumne County by the excessive pay, benefits, and pensions of the upper-echelon local government employees. It also aims to document the disparity in salary and benefits between the 20% of workers who do 80% of the work and the upper-echelon employees.
Tuolumne is one of the poorest counties in California. Yet, in 2022, we had over a dozen county employees who were paid more than Congressmen, Senators, 4-star Generals, and the Vice President. Additionally, two made more than the President.
Source: Transparent California
Tuolumne County’s Pay, Pensions, and Unfunded Pension Debt
In 2021, Tuolumne County’s total debt was $216,341,000.00, of that amount, $128,612,000.00 was for county employees’ pensions.
Page link: Tuolumne County’s Unsustainable Debt
In 2022, Tuolumne County had:
- 2 employees who received over $400,000.00 a year in pay and benefits;
- 10 employees who received over $300,000.00 a year in pay and benefits;
- 51 employees who received over $200,000.00 a year in pay and benefits;
- 297 employees who received over $100,000.00 a year in pay and benefits;
- 22 former employees who received over $100,000.00 a year in pensions;
- 353 employees who received $1,920,776.00 in overtime pay;
- 880 employees who received a total of $72,933,894 in pay and benefits;
- County employees compensation costs each resident $1,326;
- median pay for full-time private workers was $51,116;
- median pay and benefits for full-time county employees was $109,176.
Source: Transparent California
Page link: Tuolumne County’s Pay, Pensions, and Unfunded Pension Debt
Tuolumne County Pay – Top Ten 2024
| Name | Job Title | Base Pay | Pay & Benefits |
| Tracie M Riggs | County Administrative Officer | $252,313.00 | $493,864.77 |
| Neil Evans | Undersheriff | $220,772.00 | $389,899.19 |
| Sarah Carrillo | County Counsel | $216,756.00 | $383,516.59 |
| Kimberly Freeman | Health Officer/Director Of Ems | $276,412.00 | $374,231.09 |
| Maureen Frank | Director Gen Services Agency | $191,686.00 | $345,435.49 |
| David L Vasquez | Sheriff – Coroner | $210,142.00 | $334,275.17 |
| Roger D Root | Asst County Administrative Ofc | $191,479.00 | $333,657.20 |
| Annie L Hockett | Health Human Svcs Agency Dir | $165,276.00 | $329,291.86 |
| Tamara D Mariscal | Director Of Behavioral Health | $193,350.00 | $310,555.81 |
| Christopher J Schmidt | Deputy County Counsel Iv | $164,176.00 | $310,517.21 |
Source: Transparent California
Page link: Tuolumne County Pay – 100K Club 2024
Tuolumne County Pensions Top Ten – 2024
| Name | Years of Service | Year of Retirement | Pension |
| James Mele | 30.77 | 2018 | $189,460.77 |
| Craig L Pedro | 36.62 | 2018 | $188,702.31 |
| Shirlee N Juhl | 34.22 | 2008 | $175,408.05 |
| Beverly J Shane | 36.59 | 2017 | $172,134.51 |
| Adele L Arnold | 35.41 | 2015 | $144,126.99 |
| Marilyn E Wallace | Beneficiary | 2006 | $136,060.38 |
| Keith B Lunney | 33.21 | 2013 | $134,952.57 |
| Ann Connolly | 30.79 | 2019 | $132,476.79 |
| Steven C Szalay | 10.24 | 2005 | $130,315.29 |
| Michael L Knowles | 36.9 | 2014 | $128,012.94 |
Source: Transparent California
Page link: Tuolumne County Pensions 100K Club – 2024
Tuolumne County Unfunded Pensions – Top Ten 2022
| Name | Job title | Regular pay | Pension debt |
| Neil Evans | Undersheriff | $182,207.00 | $77,109.69 |
| Rebecca Espino | Health Human Svcs Agency Dir | $230,731.00 | $62,451.75 |
| Tracie M Riggs | County Administrative Officer | $183,996.00 | $62,008.12 |
| David L Vasquez | Sheriff’S Captain | $158,250.00 | $61,358.71 |
| Deborah M Bautista | Clerk/Auditor-Controller | $218,372.00 | $60,668.64 |
| Daniel Hawks | Chief Probation Officer | $146,577.00 | $60,301.69 |
| Jarrod L Pippin | Sheriff’S Captain | $147,438.00 | $60,131.04 |
| Robert S Nikiforuk | Sheriff S Lieutenant 10% | $140,427.00 | $58,916.62 |
| Eric L Erhardt | Asst County Administrative Ofc | $158,763.00 | $55,865.98 |
| Sarah Carrillo | County Counsel | $163,929.00 | $54,085.73 |
Source: Transparent California
Page link: Tuolumne County Unfunded Pensions – Top Ten 2022
Tuolumne County Overtime Pay – Top Ten 2022
| Name | Job title | Regular pay | Overtime pay |
| William Smylie | Jail Deputy Sheriff | $58,170.00 | $33,925.00 |
| Tai Yue | Deputy Sheriff | $70,295.00 | $29,643.00 |
| Romel Cuellar | Sheriff S Sergeant | $101,514.00 | $28,894.00 |
| Cody Stephens | Deputy Sheriff Corporal | $78,356.00 | $28,479.00 |
| Jamie Pacheco | Jail Deputy Sheriff | $60,781.00 | $28,217.00 |
| Lindsy Bones | Jail Deputy Sheriff Corporal | $59,912.00 | $27,999.00 |
| Nathan J Rohr | Jail Deputy Sheriff Corporal | $54,278.00 | $27,903.00 |
| James Oliver | Sheriff S Sergeant Invest | $132,163.00 | $27,697.00 |
| Jessica Holt | Jail Deputy Sheriff Corporal | $58,592.00 | $27,487.00 |
| McKenzie Lindeman | Sheriff S Dispatcher Ii | $54,776.00 | $27,252.00 |
Source: Transparent California
Page link: Tuolumne County Overtime Pay – Top Ten 2022
Federal, State, And Local Debt
In 2024, the US Debt was over 34 trillion – $34,000,000,000,000.00
- $981,000.00 is each taxpayer’s share of the US debt
Source: Truth In Accounting
In 2021, California’s Debt was $240.6 billion – $240,600,000,000.00
- $18,600 is each taxpayer’s share of California’s debt
Source: Truth in Accounting
In 2021, Tuolumne County’s Debt was $216,341,000.00
- $3,916.17 is each taxpayer’s share of Tuolumne County’s debt
Source: 2021 ACFR – Fiscal Year Ended June 30, 2021
In 2021, the City of Sonora’s Debt was ???
- Sonora has not published its Comprehensive Annual Financial Report (CAFR).
Sonora must publish its CAFR to restore public trust through financial transparency and accountability.