D.C. hands out $15M in bonuses despite recession

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http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/D_C_-hands-out-_15M-in-bonuses-despite-recession_-budget-gaps-8651125-79169767.html

By: Bill Myers
Examiner Staff Writer
December 14, 2009
Copyright 2009 by The Washington Examiner

The economy has been in the dumps for years, but the good times keep on rolling for some favored D.C. employees.
City officials have doled out nearly $15 million in bonuses and awards since Mayor Adrian Fenty took office in January 2007, records obtained by The Examiner under the Freedom of Information Act show.

Among the big winners were Schools Chancellor Michelle Rhee, who was handed $41,250 in August 2007 after barely two months on the job; Department of Health Director Pierre Vigilance, who was given $15,000 in 2008; and city property manager Robin-Eve Jasper, handed $18,000 over two years.

» Pierre Vigilance, Department of Health director, $15,000 in 2008
The bonuses were ladled out even as the city was facing nine-figure budget shortfalls and officials -- including