Retirement means big payouts for some in Erie County

In this series by the Buffalo News, reporter Aaron Besecker revealed that the "highest paid local government employee in Erie County last year" was Kenneth K. Hycner, a police lieutenant who did nothing out of the ordinary except retire. This investigation reveals that several local governments in Erie County often give police officers hefty "parting payouts." The town of Cheektowaga, where Hycner had been employed, produces some of the largest "end-of-career payments" in the area. The town's policy of encouraging comp time and liberal buyback arrangements adds to the high payout totals.