Governor proposes cutting his own salary and other state jobs

Governor Tom Vilsack will ask legislators to cut his pay by six percent. The pay cut for Vilsack and Lieutenant Governor Sally Pederson is part of the revised budget plan Vilsack will submit to legislators Wednesday. State tax collections are lagging, and Vilsack will propose cuts in many state government programs. A six-percent pay cut amounts to a combined 10-thousand dollar salary reduction for the Governor and Lieutenant Governor in the next fiscal year, which begins July 1st. Vilsack says part of leadership includes bearing some of the responsibility needed to reduce the budget. Vilsack says his revised budget will call for layoffs, but he’s not saying how many state workers will lose their jobs.