Sen. Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) unveiled legislation last week to cap the pay of administrators in the CSU and UC systems.

Lieu’s Bill – SB 959 – would make four important changes to CSU policy:

• CSU campus presidents may not earn more than 150 percent of the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court unless approved by the governor. The Chief Justice, who is in charge of administering the entire third branch of California’s judiciary, earns $228,856. Under Lieu’s bill, the pay for a campus president, who is only in charge of administering a single CSU campus, would be limited to a maximum total of $343,269, including any salary contributions from CSU nonprofits.
• CSU trustees cannot approve any pay hikes or bonuses if a student tuition increase has occurred within three years.
• When hiring a campus president, CSU trustees must give first preference to applicants within the CSU system. Secondary consideration will then be given to California residents. Out-of-state residents would be given last priority.
• Any changes to executive pay hikes or tuition must be discussed during a public session. In the past, such actions were sometimes done in closed session.

The move comes after the CSU Trustees in July awarded a $400,000 compensation package to Elliott Hirshman to serve as the new president of San Diego State University. The figure was $100,000 more than his predecessor’s salary. During the same meeting, the board also adopted a 12 percent tuition hike.

"CSU Trustees should not be spending limited state resources granting $100,000 raises for executive positions," Lieu said. "We must limit salaries to a reasonable level that is consistent with California's and CSU's fiscal conditions."