When longtime Department of Public Works Director William Howland resigned earlier this month, he said he wanted to try something new with his career. Thanks to Muriel Bowser, though, he might have another reason—or 40,395 of them. By leaving before the end of June, Howland, along with other recently departed holdovers from the Vince Gray administration, stands to make tens of thousands of dollars each in severance pay.

Gray appointees who left when the administrations changed in January received their own hefty severances, but Bowser extended the severance deadline to June 30, according to spokeswoman LaToya Foster. That means any Gray-era official looking to cash out has just a few weeks left to bail.

Howland isn’t alone in his summer exit. Also gone recently are Office of Risk Management head Phillip Lattimore and Office of Cable Television head Eric Richardson.

Thanks to a District law that makes severance pay cover twelve weeks of salary, Howland will receive around $40,395.80. Lattimore’s pay should come to around $37,947.57, while Richardson will receive $31,980.01. Their separation pay from the city could be higher, since they’ll also be paid for any unused leave time.

Separation pay for Gray officials was so high in January that D.C. Council chairman Phil Mendelson asked the D.C. Auditor to look into it. Now, thanks to the extended separation pay deadline, the District is looking at another bill.

Photo by Will Sommer