Andrew Cuomo's running mate, Bob Duffy, is the former police chief and current mayor of Rochester, which gives Cuomo some upstate and non-dynastic appeal. But the Wall Street Journal points out that Duffy "earns $127,694 as mayor and draws an annual, lifetime pension of $70,000," thanks to his police pension, which is "about 60% of the $114,259 salary he earned in 2005, his last full year on the force."
Of course, the WSJ adds that Duffy's police pension is "perfectly legal" after 28 years on the force, but "It is the latest and most notable example of a practice in New York that has drawn increasing scrutiny, as the costs of benefits for retired public employees have helped push state and local governments, including Rochester, deeper into deficits." There were some egregious double-dipping examples last year, like 75-year-old Assemblyman Harvey Weisenberg (D-Long Island) who technically retired in 2008, but still worked in Albany for $101,500 in salary plus a pension of about $72,000.
Cuomo's campaign noted that Duffy didn't pad his pension, the practice where public employees work overtime to maximize their pension payouts, and a spokesperson said, "Throughout his career, Mayor Duffy has handled his pension benefits honorably and consistent with the law, and nothing will change if he is elected lieutenant governor." As for the Costanza-style double-dipping, it's not good either.
