you're high.
ETA: As in smoking crack, not that that number is too high. realized my comment could be misunderstood
This isn't actually an argument against it, you know?
Given that the goal is keeping old people out from under bridges and not eating cat food(which was a fairly common story when I was a kid), we shouldn't be worrying so much about keeping people in a style that they have become accustomed to, like the social security system is somewhat designed to do.
Somebody who's worked 40 years paying into the system deserves something.
Ben - I'm in a homestead area. Drastically reduced property taxes on your primary home. A discount if you're a qualified member of the volunteer fire department. Another discount if you're disabled or over 65.
MikeB - $70k with 'little to nothing' to pension and healthcare isn't outrageous, I don't think. Not for a job requiring at least a bachelor's degree. $70k combined with full provisioning of healthcare and pension is, depending on the job, of course.
Janitor, depending on the nastiness they have to deal with, might be equally well paid.
The SUV thing? Given that it's 7/12th and 3 years, that's actually closer to every 6 years, and yes, NY does use LOTS of salt on the roads such that unless you take extraordinary measures the frame will be eaten by then.
And a 'baseline SUV' isn't actually that expensive. $24k, looking it up. So it boosts custodian pay $4.7k/year, in exchange for them presumably being available to make sure the school isn't collapsing from snow, cleaning out the parking lots and walkways, etc...
Probably something that their union negotiated. Possibly something to boost their pay when the politics wouldn't sustain them having their pay boosted directly.