Head of University of Texas is hired as UC president

The Board of Regents voted unanimously to hire Yudof, and its chairman, Richard C. Blum, said the $591,084 base salary and $237,000 in supplemental pension payments and other benefits next year were what the competitive marketplace demanded for such a top-flight academic and manager. That would be nearly double what his predecessor, Robert C. Dynes, receives but only about 12% more than Yudof's $742,000 package in Texas.

"He's expensive, but he's worth it," said Blum, who added that UC did not want to get into a bidding war in case Texas tried hard to keep Yudof.

UC officials acknowledged that the 10-campus system had been battered in recent years by reports of secretive and overly lavish compensation for executives, but they insisted that reforms are underway that will reduce bureaucratic costs. Yudof's pay was cleared with Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders; regents said they expect any controversy over pay will quiet down as Yudof finds ways to make UC administration more efficient.

Yudof, 63, declined to comment directly on his pay but said he was well aware of the state's budget woes and pledged to do whatever he could to keep fee increases as small as possible for the system's 220,000 students. The regents are considering raising undergraduate fees as much as 10% for next year.

"We'll get though this," Yudof said. "It may be tough. I'm not denying that. But in the long run, this is a very healthy university system with very high standards. Yes, there could be some reversals in the short term, but in the long term I think everything will go much better."

Yudof's pay package makes him one of the country's most highly compensated leaders at a public university. His compensation could go as high as $866,000 in future years, depending on supplemental pension payments. In addition, he will be eligible for a regular retirement benefit of $97,000.

Jelger Kalmijn, president of the UC systemwide University Professional and Technical Employees union, said such a large UC system presidential pay raise "is really a kick in the stomach" to many employees.