Palm Beach County Clerk and Comptroller Joe Abruzzo will earn $425,000 annually when he takes the reins of county government as its top administrator on Aug. 19.
“Welcome to the BCC side of the building,” County Mayor Maria Marino said to Abruzzo on Thursday shortly after the commission unanimously approved a five-year contract.
The 44-year-old former state lawmaker will get a roughly $257,000 salary bump from his current job. But he will be paid about $38,000 less than his predecessor. Verdenia Baker, who had been county administrator for 10 years when she retired on May 31, was making $463,000 a year.
As part of his pay package, Abruzzo will receive a seven-passenger Chevrolet Tahoe SUV. He will be evaluated annually. If he is fired, he will receive 20 weeks of pay, the most allowed under Florida law.
He will be in line for a raise in October 2026.
Like other county employees, he will be eligible to get reimbursed for education expenses. He is enrolled in an online master’s degree program in legal studies from Pepperdine University Caruso School of Law — course work he said would be covered under county rules.
Will link county worker pay to performance
In brief comments to the commission, Abruzzo pledged to “lead by example.” Like him, each of the county’s 7,100 employees will be evaluated annually, a practice he said inexplicably ended in 2008.
Instead of automatic pay hikes, future raises will be based both on merit and cost of living, he said.
“It will be tied to performance and metrics,” he said of the new pay scale that likely will start next year. “I’m trying to lead by example.”
Viewed as the favorite to get the post, Abruzzo was tapped June 17 to replace Baker. His selection came after he and three top county staffers spent two days meeting privately and publicly with commissioners and fielding questions from the public at a forum at the Palm Beach County Convention Center.
Abruzzo and the three county workers — Deputy County Administrator Patrick Rutter, Assistant County Administrator Isami Ayala-Collazo and strategic planning director Keith Clinkscales — were among 96 candidates who met minimum qualifications. Three out-of-state finalists selected by a commission-appointed task force later withdrew.
DeSantis has final say on clerk’s job
Abruzzo’s looming departure from the clerk’s office and arrival in the county’s executive suite will set off a flurry of changes within county government. Already, Ayala-Collazo has announced her resignation and other leadership changes are expected.
Most importantly, Abruzzo will have to be replaced. By Aug. 19, Palm Beach Circuit Court Chief Judge Glenn Kelley will have to appoint a temporary clerk. The likely choice is Abruzzo’s chief deputy, Shannon Ramsey-Chessman, who dropped out of the 2020 race for clerk when Abruzzo announced his candidacy and took office without opposition.
The permanent replacement will be selected by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Leading candidates include Ramsey-Chessman; Florida Rep. Mike Caruso, R-West Palm Beach; and Michael Barnett, a former county Republican Party chair who DeSantis appointed to the County Commission before he lost in the November election. Former Democratic County Commissioner Robert Weinroth, now registered as a Republican, has also expressed interest, sources said.
Caruso is seen as the favorite because he has been a loyal supporter of DeSantis, particularly during the recent legislative session when top GOP leaders publicly feuded with the governor.
The 66-year-old Delray Beach resident is also a certified public accountant. Term limits prevent the four-term lawmaker from seeking reelection when his term expires at the end of 2026.
Barnett, a lawyer, is a recent DeSantis appointee to the Palm Beach State College Board of Trustees.
Abruzzo emphasizes earnings in final report as clerk
Whoever is appointed to serve until the November 2026 election will inherit a well-run office, particularly on the side that is required to keep the county financially healthy, Abruzzo said.
Addressing the commission publicly for the last time as clerk, Abruzzo said he and his team developed a shrewd investment strategy.
Since he took office 4½ years ago, he said the county has earned $656 million on its investments compared to $179 million earned in the same period before he was elected.
“It’s the largest earnings of any county in the state,” he said. “We were on pace to crack $1 billion.”
Before he leaves, he said he intends to take steps to assure the trend continues.
“I’m able to do long-term investments to make sure we have sufficient earnings for many years to come,” he said.
This story was originally published by Stet News Palm Beach, a WLRN News partner.
