Retired, but... DWP Chief to Still be Paid $82K for 3 Months Work

Former Department of Water & Power CEO David Nahai may have resigned last Friday, but that doesn't mean he still won't get a comfy paycheck while he starts his new job at the Clinton Climate Initiative. Through the end of 2009, Nahai will earn about $6,300 a week as a consultant.

“There’s nothing nefarious about it, nothing complex about it. This is a reasonable business decision, nothing more than that,” DWP commission President Lee Kanon Alpert told the LA Times. “David’s resigned, and we need his institutional knowledge for the next few months.”

If Nahai suddenly dropped off the face of the planet into a sinkhole on Friday instead of retiring, we suspect the loss of institutional knowledge would be minimal. It's not like he led the department for 30 years.

The issue is listed as a proposal on today's commission agenda. Alpert said although no vote is needed, it's there as a formality and for transparency reasons. Villaraigosa's office confirmed to the Times that Nahai will continue to earn his salary.