$70 per person

Local officials may want to look northeast when considering their next pay packages. Charles Franklin, who heads the Albemarle Mental Health Center in northeastern NC, is paid more than $319,000 a year and has a $1,000 per month car allowance (enough to finance a $60,000 car). Albemarle MHC serves 4,700 patients. Franklin’s salary is twice those of mental health directors in areas that serve more patients, according to the Charlotte Observer. It works out to about $70 per patient for Franklin, who doesn’t see any of them.