Factors Influencing Governors' Salaries: An Update and Extension

Abstract

This paper updates and extends an earlier study by Abraham, Johnson and Uyar (1994) by examining the determinants of governors' salaries for the forty-eight contiguous states. State per capita personal income, population, unemployment rate and per capita government revenues are the primary determinants of governors' compensation. Further, state per capita revenues and expenditures have a negative impact on governors' pay. Our findings support the view that a governor's pay is based primarily on the responsibility and productivity measures given the size of a state's economy and government (H70, J30).