I know nothing of Mr. Williams' platform, values, etc. [I'm a recent move-down from the Peninsula - have to catch up on local politics.]

But $75K is not a lot to live on here to maintain an adequate standard of living - esp if one has a home to maintain, health insurance to pay, put some away for a rainy day, etc.

At the same time, I don't wanna pay extra taxe$ to pay higher salaries to these folks either. So this might strike a good balance.

And the fact he's working with industry means he might hear some of its concerns and help stop gov't driving away business. CA, in general, has done a lot to run biz outta town even without regard to lower-cost "outsourced" work. I'd be more scared if he was working for some no-name "poltical consulting" firm that is essentially just a conduit for legal kickbacks to be paid to the politician (see recent SF Chronicle news articles about east Bay's Don Perata).