Goffstown pays its school and town employees less than its neighbor to the south, reflecting the economic disparities between the two communities.

A comparison of the incomes of the top 25 earners among the four local governments using the most recent information shows that Goffstown consistently has lower salaries than Bedford.

The highest paid official overall is Stacy Buckley, who was offered $120,000 to serve as the interim school superintendent in Goffstown for the upcoming academic year. But the other four public employees making $100,000 or more are all in Bedford: Town Manager Russ Marcoux, $119,600; school Superintendent Tim Mayes, $117,500; high school Principal George Edwards, $105,232; and police Chief David Bailey, $101,899.

In Goffstown, Town Administrator Sue Desruisseaux makes $93,997, topping all other town salaries. The next highest earners are below $90,000. Bedford has two town employees in the $90,000 range: Fire Chief Scott Wiggin, $94,890, and Public Works Director James Stanford, $91,707.

“It doesn’t surprise me,” said Guy Caron, chairman of the Goffstown Residents Association. “I think the per capita income in Bedford is higher overall.”

The per capita income in Bedford was $37,730, according to the last U.S. Census. In Goffstown it was $21,907. The total value of all property in Bedford was $3.1 billion in 2007, according to the New Hampshire Department of Revenue Administration. Goffstown was at $1.2 billion.

Buckley appears to be the exception for top Goffstown school employees. As a rule, they make less than those in Bedford. After Buckley the next two highest earners in the Goffstown schools are high school Principal Frank McBride, $95,156, and middle school Principal James Hunt, $92,588. Two assistant superintendents each pull down $92,500.

Bedford schools, on the other hand, have four employees between $95,000 and $100,000 and two principals are in the $90,000 to $95,000 bracket. The salaries did not seem excessive to Roy Stewart, president of the Bedford Taxpayers Association.

“We’re supposed to be right in the median throughout the southern part of the state,” Stewart said. “Bedford has always tried to stay in the middle sort of. Maybe the high middle, not the top.”

The income gap persists among lower-level employees. The 25th top town earner in Bedford makes $5,000 more than the 25th town position in Goffstown. The difference between the same positions in the two school systems is nearly $9,000.

Because Bedford has a larger tax base, it can afford higher salaries without hitting taxpayers too hard, according to Stewart. The total property tax rate in Bedford in 2007 was $18.99 per $1,000 in value while the comparable Goffstown rate was $24.70.

Caron does not have any objections to most of the school and town salaries in Goffstown. But he thinks the superintendent salary is high, considering the responsibilities of the position and comparing it to the salaries of other school officials.

In addition to Goffstown, Buckley also is superintendent for schools in Dunbarton and New Boston. She is responsible for an estimated 3,600 students, according to Keith Allard, chairman of the Goffstown School Board. In Bedford, Mayes has just one school district, but an expected enrollment of more than 4,300 students next year, according to his office.

Allard said Buckley’s salary was a little below average for superintendents of similar-sized school districts in New Hampshire.

He noted that outgoing Superintendent Darrell Lockwood was paid $128,000 in his final year and received several benefits, such as a car for official business.