On Sept. 24, Capital Metro approved its fiscal year 2013 budget of $274.5 million and awarded CEO and President Linda Watson a 6.5 percent pay increase and one-time bonus of more than $13,000 for her performance.
The budget includes $64.4 million in capital expenses, many of which are referred to as state-of-good-repair needs that the transit authority has deferred from year to year, interim Chief Financial Officer Billy Hamilton said. Hamilton said Capital Metro typically spends $15 million to $20 million on capital expenses.
"What we're seeing in the next two years is really a surge as we try to make up some of the capital needs, and then it will begin to level off," he said. "Again, that is intentional planning to meet some needs that are long overdue."
"This is not new programs and initiatives. This is to make the system work better and to meet legitimate capital needs," Hamilton said.
The board also completed Watson's annual performance evaluation and opted to award her with a 6.5 percent pay increase to $245,248 and a one-time 6 percent bonus of $13,817. The increases were retroactively awarded for July 26.
Watson has a five-year employment agreement with Capital Metro that began in July 2010. In 2011, she received a 1 percent base pay increase and 3 percent bonus.
Dan Dawson, vice president of marketing and communications, said the board recognized Watson's effort of turning the agency around through better financial transparency, assistance with reorganizing the labor structure, moving forward the MetroRapid project and making the agency more sustainable.
"President Watson has really raised the bar," he said.
Dawson said Watson's total compensation package is about $270,000, which is among the lowest compared with other transit authority leaders in Texas. He said the employment package of Gary Thomas, Dallas Area Rapid Transit president, is about $322,000; George Greanias, president and CEO of Metro in Houston, has a $235,000 employment package; and Keith Parker, CEO and president of San Antonio's VIA Transit System, has an employment package of $356,250.
