BRANSON MO NEWS: JEFFERSON CITY • The former head of the Missouri Department of Conservation was paid a total of $120,000 over a 10-month span as part of a separation agreement that is being criticized by the state auditor.In a report issued Thursday, Auditor Nicole Galloway slammed the department for an agreement that not only paid Robert Ziehmer, but allowed him to keep his health insurance and rack up pension credits even though he had taken a new job in the private sector.”Missouri is well-known across the nation for premier outdoor opportunities, making the work of the Department of Conservation an important part of our economy,” Galloway said. “It’s crucial that officials ensure every dollar spent has value for Missouri taxpayers by supporting their mission.”
The previously secret agreement between Ziehmer and the agency was first reported by the Post-Dispatch in March 2017, more than seven months after he’d left the agency to work for a foundation connected to outdoor retailing giant Bass Pro Shops.The audit said the separation agreement was a way for the agency to pay Ziehmer’s compensatory time earned for working more than a 40 hour work week.That is a different explanation than what the agency told the newspaper last year when officials suggested that Ziehmer might take legal action when they pushed him out of the top job after six years at the helm.“To ensure an amicable parting, the parties wish to compromise, resolve and settle, finally and forever, any claims and causes of action that were or could have been asserted by the employee against MDC,” the separation agreement reads.In the agreement, both sides said the pact should not be construed as an admission of liability or wrongdoing.“MDC expressly denies any such liability, wrongdoing or responsibility,” the agreement says.Galloway said no other …
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