(Romney-appointed) State agency chief got top severance deal

State agency chief got top severance deal
$510,000 pact for GOP appointee

By Frank Phillips, Globe Staff | March 13, 2007

With a Democratic takeover of the governor's office looking highly likely last
September, Mitchell Adams, a stalwart Republican gubernatorial appointee who
heads the state's technology development office, negotiated a severance
package that will hand him more than $500,000 if he is replaced by a new
governor.

The severance deal, which appears to be unrivaled in state government, was
agreed to by a 23-member board with a majority of Republican appointees.

At the same time, Adams, who was appointed in 2001, persuaded the
Massachusetts Technology Collaborative board to raise his pay by $15,000
to $255,000.

The threat of a Democratic takeover of the corner office was one consideration
as the board and Adams worked into the fall to craft the new contract that
insulated his job from political change, said a board member who negotiated
the deal.

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