To The Editor,

This year, Port Director Jim Kuntz will receive a"happy December"salary check for $25,000, for no justifiable reason. Added to his reported base salary of $134,726, this makes his cash compensation package just under $160,000. My research (calling many port districts and asking for the dollar amount of their director's salary and the actual amount of any "add-on's" like vehicle use) shows Kuntz's total compensation package to be the fourth highest in the state, behind only the port directors of Vancouver, Tacoma and Seattle. Port Director Kuntz makes more than the State Attorney General and more than the directors of port districts twice our size. His salary is much closer to that of the governor than those of comparable port directors.

The $5,000 raise Executive Director Jim Kuntz was given this year is especially questionable given that Mike Frederickson and another commissioner admitted to being hosted by the executive director at his condo in Phoenix not long before granting the raise. It's also questionable considering the tough economic times we are in. I would guess that citizens who work hard all year without a "happy December" check would be very angry. They should be. It's time for a change.

Norm Osterman Walla Walla