State Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, also released a report from the California Faculty Association -- a union representing 23,000 professors in the California State University system -- that he said reveals Cal State executives' "waste, fraud and abuse of taxpayer dollars."

Yee asked Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to sign two bills -- SB190 and AB1413 -- that were backed by Yee and Assemblyman Anthony Portantino, D-Pasadena.

Portantino will take a turn at promoting the bills as he releases another faculty association report attacking executives today.

Together, Yee said, the bills "would ensure that discussions about executive pay and perks would be held publicly and that executives could not sneak in sweetheart deals."

Last week, Cal State trustees spurred ongoing controversy when they gave Charles Reed, the system's chancellor, an 11.8 percent raise, to $421,500 a year. Campus presidents received similar pay boosts.

Cal State administration representatives did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday.

Reed recently said the raises were justified because salaries of Cal State executives lagged those of colleges in other states, and the increase makes the system more competitive as it seeks talent.

But critics point out that student fees have doubled in the past five years and argue the overall system is underfunded.

Yee, a graduate of San Francisco State, a former faculty member there, and father of a San Francisco State student, released a faculty association report that says pay raises occurred:  

The association report also chastises the state for spending taxpayer dollars on a study -- which it contends is flawed -- that was used to justify executive pay raises.

It also charges that administrators were kept on the payroll after they had taken other jobs, in case they wanted to return, and that donations intended for academic programs were shifted to athletic programs

By Steve Geissinger, Media News Sacramento Bureau, September 27, 2007