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# Iowa Audit Finds Governor’s Office Salaries Up 35%
- URL: https://www.theamericanquorum.com/state-news-iowa-2026-09-20-b/
- Published: 2026-09-20T22:43:43.000Z
- Updated: 2026-09-20T22:43:43.000Z
- Description: A state auditor review found inflation-adjusted salaries in Iowa’s governor’s office rose 35% over a decade even as executive-branch pay fell overall, sharpening questions for the next budget cycle.
- Author: News Desk
- Tags: State News, Iowa

[Iowa’s governor’s office increased inflation-adjusted employee salaries by 35%](https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/auditor-employee-salaries-rose-governors-and-secretary-states-offices?ref=theamericanquorum.com) over the decade ending in fiscal 2025, while compensation across the executive branch fell 7.6%, according to a state auditor’s review released Sept. 17.

The findings, [reported by Iowa Capital Dispatch](https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/auditor-employee-salaries-rose-governors-and-secretary-states-offices?ref=theamericanquorum.com), make the governor’s office one of two statewide elected offices that moved against the broader trend. The secretary of state’s office posted a 10% inflation-adjusted increase. The auditor compared fiscal years 2016 through 2025 and also separated averages from before and after the COVID-19 pandemic.

On that narrower comparison, covering fiscal years 2017-2020 and 2022-2025, [inflation-adjusted average salaries rose 16%](https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/auditor-employee-salaries-rose-governors-and-secretary-states-offices?ref=theamericanquorum.com) in the governor’s office and 7% in the secretary of state’s office. Other statewide elected offices recorded declines ranging from 1% to 9%. Auditor Rob Sand, a Democratic candidate for governor in 2026, said the review was intended to give taxpayers a fact-based look at executive-branch spending. His candidacy is relevant context because the report scrutinizes the office he is seeking.

The auditor did not treat the percentages as a simple agency-by-agency scorecard. [Gov. Kim Reynolds’ 2023 reorganization](https://iowacapitaldispatch.com/2023/04/04/gov-kim-reynolds-signs-major-government-restructuring-plan-into-law/?ref=theamericanquorum.com) moved employees and responsibilities among departments, making long-range departmental comparisons unreliable. The report instead emphasized offices led by statewide elected officials, which were less affected by the restructuring. Iowa’s own [executive-branch employee dataset](https://data.iowa.gov/catalog/dataset/1038?ref=theamericanquorum.com) now tracks filled positions by pay period, department and worker type, but begins only in April 2022.

[Reynolds’ office defended its pay decisions](https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/auditor-employee-salaries-rose-governors-and-secretary-states-offices?ref=theamericanquorum.com), saying experienced senior staff and recruits from the private sector require competitive compensation. Secretary of State Paul Pate’s office said the period included rising cybersecurity demands and investments in specialized technology and election-training roles; it also noted that Pate’s own salary did not increase.

The new review adds a decade-wide measure to earlier public-record reporting. After lawmakers increased the governor’s office appropriation for fiscal 2024, [Bleeding Heartland documented raises of 13% to 17% for four senior staff members](https://www.bleedingheartland.com/2023/12/18/exclusive-after-budget-boost-iowa-governor-gave-senior-staff-big-raises/?ref=theamericanquorum.com). The underlying [state payroll register](https://www.bleedingheartland.com/static/media/2023/12/IGOV-pay-register-Belin-Request-2023.pdf?ref=theamericanquorum.com) showed biweekly compensation and benefit costs across the office.

The audit also identified workforce changes beyond pay. [Temporary, seasonal and intern positions grew](https://www.newsfromthestates.com/article/auditor-employee-salaries-rose-governors-and-secretary-states-offices?ref=theamericanquorum.com) from about 1% of executive-branch staff in 2016 to roughly 9% in 2025\. Health and Human Services, Corrections and Transportation together accounted for 54% to 57% of full-time executive employees since fiscal 2021\. Inflation-adjusted travel and subsistence spending fell more than 21% when the pre-pandemic and post-pandemic periods were compared.

For taxpayers and legislators, the practical question is not whether every office should move in lockstep, but whether staffing changes are producing measurable public value. The report does not answer that performance question. It does, however, isolate where compensation trends diverged and supplies a baseline for budget writers to examine hiring, turnover and service delivery during the next appropriations cycle.