10 Highest Paid Winnebago County Employees in 2023

Who do you think are the highest-paid employees of Winnebago County? You might be surprised when you discover who made the most. More than a dozen county employees made more than $150,000.

The fiscal year 2023 income data was recently shared by the Rockford Register Star, showing the top 10 Winnebago County Employees' salaries, including overtime.

The top earner in the county was a nurse who was paid over $220,000 in fiscal year 2023.

The Top 15 Highest-Paid Winnebago County Employees

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10. Sheriff Gary Caruana, $154,403

The sheriff's salary is determined by state statute

9. Deputy Circuit Clerk Thomas Lawson, $155,160

Base salary of $130,343 and $24,761 in paid time off (PTO)

8. Sheriff's Deputy Michael Gruninger, $159,768

Base salary of $128,869, $16,459 in overtime, and $14,440 in PTO and miscellaneous pay

7. Sheriff's Chief Deputy Rick Ciganek, $167,721

Base salary of $142,788 and $24,169 in PTO

6. Winnebago County Administrator Patrick Thompson, $172,400

5. Public Defender Nick Zimmerman, $173,633

The law states that Nick's salary is a percentage of the state's attorney's salary.

4. Public Health Administrator Sandra Martell, $174,922

3. Sheriff's Deputy Tomasz Wysocki, $185,000

Base salary of $147,041 and $18,828 in overtime in addition to sick, vacation, and miscellaneous other payments, according to numbers shared by finance.yahoo.com.

2. State’s Attorney J. Hanley, $192,928

Salary mandated by state law.

The highest paid Winnebago County employee in 2023 was,

1. Mary A. Schmuttenmaer, $220,480

Mary is the lead licensed practical nurse at the county-owned River Bluff Nursing Home. Base salary of $65,987, overtime of $143,578, and $10,915 in PTO and miscellaneous pay.

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