Why won't Gene Therriault resign? He has a million and a half reasons

Confused over why Gene Therriault is still on the job and yet Nancy Dahlstrom resigned. Both were sitting legislators when they were hired meaning Gov. Sean Parnell broke the law when he offered them their jobs. Dahlstrom did the right thing and resigned once Parnell’s attorney general came out with a legal opinion calling the hiring illegal.

So why is Therriault still on the job? Why has he refused to resign as Dahlstrom has? The answer to that question is easy. Follow the money.

Therriault must be aware his new six-figure job will drastically change his state pension plan. Therriault is a tier one state employee. He’s started working for the state back in 1981 as a legislative assistant. He’s been in the legislature since 1990.

When Parnell illegally offered Therriault a job last summer paying him $110,000, it meant a considerable raise for him. Therriault was only paid $24,000 as a legislator.

But the real story is not the big fat raise Therriault got with his job Parnell broke the law to give him. The real story is what Therriault’s new job will do for his pension.

If Therriault retired from the legislature last summer instead of being illegally hired by Parnell, he would have received a state pension check the rest of his life for approximately $1000.

But with his new illegal position, Therriault’s monthly pension check will be much larger if he can stay on the job for another nine months. The state bases pension checks on the highest earning months.

If Therriault can keep his illegal job through April 31^st, 2011, his monthly pension check that he will receive for the rest of his life will go from $1000 a month to $5,100 a month.

Every month for the rest of his life, Gene Therriault will get an extra $4,100 a month in the mail thanks to the illegal job Sean Parnell gave him.

Therriault’s illegal job will send an extra $52,000 a year of state money directly into his back account every year for the rest of his life. If Parnell had not illegally given Therriault the job, he would have only received $12,000 a year for the rest of his life.

Parnell’s illegal hiring of Therriault will mean a pension of $62,000 a year for as long as he lives.

The average Alaskan earns $42,000 a year but they actually have to go to work. Therriault will get $62,000 a year for the rest of his life because he knows the governor. It’s good to know the governor.

If Therriault lives another 30 years this illegal job his buddy Parnell gave him will mean an extra $1,500,000 of state money deposited directly into Gene Therriault’s bank account. 

Why is Gene Therriault refusing to quit his illegal job? Maybe the million and half bucks has something to do with it.

You may wonder why Parnell hasn’t demanded Therriault resign. Remember Parnell didn’t force Dahlstrom to quit. She did the right thing on her own.

It’s no secret Parnell could use Therriault’s popularity in Fairbanks to help with his re-election bid. Parnell even sent Therriault to fill in for him once during a Fairbanks debate.

Is Parnell so desperate to get reelected he is willing to spend a million and a half dollars on Therriault?

Where’s state Attorney General Dan Sullivan? Why hasn’t he spoken out on this scandal?

Why the silence from legislators? Maybe they hope Parnell will send a million and half their way.

And lastly where’s the media on this? If a governor illegally giving a legislator a job worth a million and half extra dollars isn’t a story than I don’t know what is.

You say Dan this kind of pension padding goes on all the time. Maybe. But in this particular case it is illegal. Does that matter anymore?