Democratic state Rep. Bruce “Zeke” Zalaski of Southington didn’t run for re-election last year after a decade in the legislature, but he didn’t retire from public service either.
In January, Gov. Dannel Malloy appointed Zalaski to the Employment Security Board of Review within the Department of Labor.
According to a department spokeswoman, Zalaski earns $3,229.28 each pay period, which amounts to more than $80,000 year.
The board decides on unemployment insurance appeals. Its decisions can be appealed to superior court.
Zalaski joined former Middletown Mayor Domenique Thornton on the Board of Review. Malloy appointed Thornton in 2012.
Both Thornton and Zalaski faced arrest for allegedly drinking and driving while in elected office.
A judge dismissed 2005 charges against Thornton within a week of the incident. Republican Sebastian Giuliano went on to defeat Thornton two months later. Thornton’s arrest continued to generate controversy in Middletown and its police department after she left office.
Zalaski announced his decision not to run again in May of 2012. He was arrested the previous December for driving while intoxicated and that February a judge put him in an alcohol education program, according to the Courant.