Pat McCrory's cabinet makes more than $1 million -- a $78,000 boost since Republican lawmakers changed state law to allow the governor to set the salaries.
The eight cabinet salaries have been set in state law for years but the legislature gave the next governor the ability to change them. McCrory hiked his cabinet payroll an average 8 percent.
McCrory bumped four cabinet secretaries -- Health and Human Services, Public Safety, Transportation and Commerce -- to $135,000 from the previous $121,807. Four other agency heads -- Environment and Natural Resources, Revenue, Administration and Cultural Resources -- increased to $128,000 from $121,807.
However, Wos, the DHHS secretary, is not accepting her pay hike. She is working for $1, just as State Budget Director Art Pope is doing.
McCrory told The News & Observer in an interview Wednesday that he set the salaries based on the size of the agency budgets. "I'm trying to make it at least where they can afford to live while running multi-billion departments," McCrory said.
The legislature raised the governor's salary 1.2 percent to $141,265, just as with other state employees. Under former Gov. Bev Perdue, cabinet salaries totaled $975,000. Under McCrory, the total is nearly $1.1 million.
Comments
Message to Governor McCrory
January 10, 2013 - 7:17pm — awbealGovernor, are you serious? You needed to raise their salaries so they could "afford to live"? They couldn't afford to live on $121,807? Wow, they must be big spenders. Personally, I would be happy to live on $121,807, as would most North Carolinians. Also, Governor, are you (actually, the Republicans in the legislature who allowed you to increase the salaries) saying that you couldn't get quality people to serve in your Cabinet (which is a great honor) unless you offered them more than the previous Cabinet secretaries made? Anyone who would refuse the job if it paid $121,807 but would take the job if it paid $135,000 should not be in your Cabinet. They are supposed to be public servants. Also, since you found the money in the budget for these salary increases (while you keeping say "there's no more money"), I am SURE you can also find money in the budget for increases for all the other state employees. Because, you know, they need to be able to afford to live, and we need to attract the best people to work for the people of our great state.
Conservatives?
January 10, 2013 - 4:40pm — interested860Also, doubled the inaugural bash budget!