Public records obtained by the South Shore Times show Plymouth County Treasurer Thomas O’Brien repeatedly raised concerns about the commissioners’ decision to offer incoming County Administrator Troy Clarkson a three-year employment contract with compensation exceeding $215,000.
The records also show that attorney Shannon Resnick privately and repeatedly described the proposed employment agreement as a contract, despite the document being characterized publicly as an “agreement,” presumably to align with county employment policies.
In a July 6 email to commissioners, Resnick made the distinction explicit.
“His response is for a Employment Agreement (this is a contract),” Resnick wrote before outlining Clarkson’s proposed terms.
Resnick then recommended that commissioners meet to discuss the “proposed contract,” vote on a response to “this contract” and conduct the negotiations in executive session under the Open Meeting Law exemption for contract negotiations with nonunion personnel.
At the end of the email, Resnick told commissioners to contact her individually with questions and specifically invited them to call her.
“Please let me know separately (feel free to call me) if you have any questions,” Resnick wrote.
The direction to communicate separately was accompanied by a warning in capital letters instructing commissioners not to respond to everyone copied on the email because the Open Meeting Law would apply. Individual phone conversations between commissioners and Resinick would not be subject to open meeting law, leaving no written email trail documenting what advice was given or what commissioners said in response.
In addition to her work with Plymouth County, Resnick also serves as a legal counsel for the City of Brockton, Clarkson’s previous employer. Resnick was negotiating with Clarkson while he held the chief financial officer position for the city.
Resnick has not responded to several calls from the South Shore Times to her Hingham law office.
O’Brien’s objections began before the commissioners approved the final terms of Clarkson’s employment.
In a July 1 email to Resnick, O’Brien said Plymouth County had never provided an employment contract to its county administrator. He said doing so would depart from past practice, conflict with the county’s personnel rules and shift leverage from the commissioners to the employee.
“Regardless of its legality, which was questioned by previous counsel for Plymouth County in 2008, it does not make any sense and is fiduciarily irresponsible for the County to enter into a contract that reduces its management rights,” O’Brien wrote.
O’Brien also warned that a contract could prevent the county from adjusting Clarkson’s compensation during a future financial crisis, even if other employees were subject to furloughs or salary reductions.
“In short, it is my humble opinion that an employment contract for the County Administrator is simply bad public policy,” O’Brien wrote.
Resnick’s July 6 response to commissioners acknowledged that granting an employment agreement would set a new precedent for the county. She also told commissioners they were not obligated to approve Clarkson’s request.
“The Commissioners do not have to respond/authorize to give an employment contract,” Resnick wrote. “This is just requested by Dr. Clarkson. As mentioned previously, this would be new precedent to give an employment agreement to a county employee.”
O’Brien again raised the authority issue in an Aug. 3 email following a commissioners’ executive session with Clarkson.
“For the record, I do not believe current negotiations relating to a ‘contract’ are within the scope of the Commissioners’ authority,” O’Brien wrote. “I also do not believe that negotiations related to a salary well outside the posted range are being conducted in good faith.”
As previously reported by South Shore Times, the county advertised the administrator position with a salary range of $100,000 to $124,000. Clarkson ultimately received a base salary of $185,000. Accounting for additional stipends, his total compensation will exceed $215,000.
In a July 13 email to commissioners, O’Brien said the county administrator’s compensation had historically remained comparable to the salaries of the assistant treasurer and assistant register of deeds. Those positions were budgeted at approximately $103,626 and $118,965, respectively, for fiscal year 2027.
O’Brien said commissioners had also generally avoided hiring a new employee at the same salary as the departing employee, much less at a substantially higher salary.
He argued that Plymouth County’s limited responsibilities and approximately $12.5 million in recurring revenue did not support compensation comparable to that offered by larger municipalities or other public agencies.
“As a result, I believe that it would be fiscally imprudent and a deviation from past practice to offer any new employee a salary beyond that of the current employee and better still should be in line with the salaries of the two similar positions in the budget,” O’Brien wrote.
Resnick raised her own concerns about how Clarkson’s compensation would be funded. She told commissioners that paying more than $124,000 would require action by the Plymouth County Advisory Board under the existing budget.
The contract states that Clarkson would receive the remaining compensation owed under the agreement if his employment were terminated before the end of the term.