EDITORIAL A GIFT FOR CODY EIDC HEAD ENJOYS A GREEN CHRISTMAS AT PUBLIC EXPENSE.

'TIS truly the season to be jolly for Cody Cluff, the man who turned a good idea to stop runaway film production into a personal fiefdom.

In his seven years as president of the Entertainment Industry Development Corp., Cluff spent millions of dollars in public funds without anyone's watching, without anyone's auditing. Now Cluff has finally agreed to step down - a month after the quasi-public corporation's board tried to put him on administrative leave - in exchange for a $300,000 golden parachute.

In Los Angeles, few things are rewarded quite as handsomely as failure in public offices. So Cluff will be collecting an additional six months in salary and benefits, his work computer and up to $200,000 in paid legal expenses.

He'll likely need that last item.

Cluff leaves the EIDC in the midst of an ongoing district attorney's investigation of rampant waste and abuse under his watch. Among his potential offenses: lavishing $500,000 in public funds on personal expenses, many of them highly questionable, and spending tens of thousands more to help elect the city and county officials who make up the EIDC's governing board.

Some EIDC funds - which were supposed to be used to keep film and TV production crews from leaving Los Angeles - even went to a rival organization trying to lure film studios into Pittsburgh. That organization is run by a woman with whom Cluff has a close personal relationship.

Suffice it to say, Cluff did little to bring honor or credibility to the EIDC. His removal was long overdue, and, depending on what the D.A. finds, his prosecution may soon be in order.

This being L.A., that kind of behavior ``merits'' a six-figure buyout.

But it comes as little surprise that city and county leaders would sign off on such a deal. After all, Cluff took care of them by funneling EIDC money into their political campaigns and Mayor James Hahn's anti-secession crusade. It was their turn to return the favor.

Besides, they need Cluff. He's the only one who can make sense of the mess he left behind at the EIDC. Auditors who are working on the corporation's reorganization can't figure out what happened to missing, undocumented piles of money. A condition of Cluff's severance deal is that he help them figure it all out - unless, of course, he feels the need to invoke his Fifth Amendment protections against selncrimination.

This sets quite a precedent for aspiring public administrators: Be sure to make such a mess of things that you become indispensable; it will earn you a bundle in severance benefits.

What becomes of the EIDC in the post-Cluff era remains to be seen. City and county leaders want only to wash their hands of the entire situation, which they will most likely do by removing themselves from the corporation's board and installing their fat-cat friends in their place.

It's a win-win proposition for the politicians: They get another layer of political insulation from their failures to fulfill their responsibilities, and their contributors get one more perk for their loyalty.

For the insiders, every proposition is win-win. No matter how badly they fail, some lucrative award inevitably awaits them.

For proof, look no further than Cody Cluff.