Massachusetts Lawmakers Push to Nix Fitness Test Perk

An obscure perk tucked away in the state police contract triggers an instant raise when troopers pass a fitness test - a bonus that has already cost taxpayers $11 million and isn't being ruled out in the next contract, officials said.

State legislators fear the little-known salary bump could blindside the budget as the economy sinks deeper into a recession.

The governor's office told the Herald last night all active contract negotiations are being suspended while the state braces for more bad economic news.

Yet nobody will say if the one-time, 2.5 percent raise given to more than 2,000 troopers who passed a fitness test over the past two years will be repeated. The current state police contract, which boosted troopers' pay by 19 percent, expires Dec. 31.

Some in the Legislature - who didn't even know the perk existed - say it's time for the bonus to be bounced.

"Being fit is not something you should get a bonus for," said Senate Minority Leader Richard R. Tisei (R-Wakefield). "That should be a given."

Joe Landolfi, spokesman for Gov. Deval Patrick, told the Herald last night he can't talk about specific contracts, but every union is being warned not to get their hopes too high.

"We have limited resources," said Landolfi, declining to comment specifically on the state police fitness test bonus.

The president of the trooper union was also mum when asked about the pricey payout.

"I can't talk to you about that," said Sgt. Rick Brown, president of the State Police Association of Massachusetts.

A Herald payroll investigation found that the state has paid out more than $11 million to 2,000-plus troopers who passed the fitness test, which Brown said is the only one of its kind in the nation.

Troopers averaged $5,500 in added pay from the fitness benefit. Senior officers have averaged $7,600-plus from the raise that was retroactive to 2005, according to payroll records obtained by the Herald following a public records request.

The fitness test, which is given every two years, begins with a medical exam and then requires troopers to complete two obstacle courses in under two minutes. Cops climb stairs, cuff a dummy and crawl through tunnels.

Only 10 troopers have failed. Those who fail are sent to work out at the State Police Training Academy in New Braintree to get back into shape.

On top of the fitness dough, troopers were also given annual raises of 3.75 percent, according to state police spokesman David Procopio, who added the test has resulted in a fitter force.

But the contract, deemed one of the most lucrative in the state's history, was awarded by former Gov. Mitt Romney. The troopers were the only union to endorse Romney's run for governor in 2002.

"We need to think of affordability," said House Minority Leader Bradley H. Jones (R-North Reading). "We have to think longterm. We can't have any ticking timebomb financially."

Republished with permission of The Boston Herald.