So much for limited government … With her state facing an estimated $1 billion budget shortfall, S.C. Gov. Nikki Haley handed out huge salary increases to top gubernatorial staffers on her first full day in office. She also doled out big salaries to newly-created positions within the governor’s office.
Paying attention, Tea Partiers?
Haley started things off by giving her new chief of staff, Tim Pearson, a 27.5 percent pay raise. Pearson will make $125,000 a year – or $27,000 more than Scott English made while serving as chief of staff to former Gov. Mark Sanford.
Pearson will also have a full-time assistant who makes $60,000 a year.
Haley’s deputy chief of staff for communications and legislative affairs – Trey Walker – will be paid $122,775 a year. That’s a 42.3 percent increase over the second-highest paid staffer in the Sanford administration.
Haley’s top lawyer, Swati Patel, will be paid $102,000 a year – which is a 36 percent increase over the $75,000 a year that Sanford paid his top lawyer.
Haley’s other two deputy chiefs of staff, former Rep. Ted Pitts (policy and cabinet affairs) and Katherine Haltiwanger (operations) will be paid $90,000 and $80,000 a year, respectively.
Sanford’s office had just one employee who made a six figure salary – Mark Sanford ($106,078). That salary is set by law and will not change – meaning Haley will also be paid $106,078 a year.
The Haley staff salaries – which were obtained by the Associated Press – showed increases of varying size up and down the executive staff roster.
Haley’s spokesman, Rob Godfrey, will be paid $65,000 – which is a 4.8 percent increase over the $62,000 that Sanford’s spokesman was paid.
Haley’s budget director, Jamie Shuster, will also make $65,000 – which is the same amount paid to Sanford’s budget director. Yet to be seen, however, is whether Haley will actually submit an operational executive budget as Sanford has done for the last eight years, or merely provide lawmakers with a handful of spending “suggestions.”
Haley will also pay $65,000 a year to legislative liaison Katherine Veldran, while cabinet liaison Taylor Hall will make $70,000 a year. Another policy advisor, Josh Baker, will make $60,000 a year.
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