Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Vancouver USA Port Awards Raise to Executive Director

The governing board for the Port of Vancouver USA on Tuesday unanimously approved a 3 percent salary raise for port Executive Director Larry Paulson.

The raise is retroactive to Jan. 1, 2011 and is based on Paulson's 2010 salary of $165,600. Paulson's $500-per-month expense account related to the use of a vehicle for port business was left unchanged by the board.

The board met prior to Tuesday's public meeting to conduct its annual review of the executive director's compensation package, before voting on Paulson's increase in public session.

Last year, the port board chose not to increase Paulson's compensation, citing the condition of the overall economy. Paulson's last raise was in 2009 when he was awarded a 4 percent increase from $159,120 to $165,600.

The three members of the board, while acknowledging that national economic conditions remained difficult, were unanimous in their praise of Paulson's performance and leadership over the past 12 months – one of the strongest years on record for the port.

Like many West Coast port executive directors, Paulson's compensation is nearly identical to that of the port city's executive manager. Vancouver City Manager Eric Holmes earns $161,500 per year.