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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eye On Boise

State’s highest-paid employee is still BSU’s head football coach, followed by BB coach, college presidents…

The annual “Rainbow Report” about the state’s workforce is out, and once again, it shows that the highest-paid state employee is Boise State University’s head football coach. Coach Bryan Harsin’s salary of $1.1 million is among those of 338 state employees who pull down salaries higher than that of Gov. Butch Otter, who makes $124,436 a year. The report includes total salaries – not just those that come from state funds.

Here are the rest of the top five highest-paid state employees in Idaho: 2. BSU head basketball Coach Leon Rice, $650,000; 3. BSU President Bob Kustra, $396,562; 4. Idaho State University President Arthur Vailas, $381,521; and 5. University of Idaho President Chuck Staben, $374,005.

Most of those on the list of those who earn more than the governor are top administrators, deans, coaches or faculty at Idaho’s public universities; or physicians with the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare, but there are others. Among them: Bob Maynard, chief investment officer for the Public Employee Retirement System of Idaho, $303,326; Idaho Transportation Department Director Brian Ness, $191,776; and Idaho State Insurance Fund Executive Connie Barnett, $190,008.



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

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