Branstad is double-dipping into the state’s coffers by taking both his salary for being governor, and his pension for having been governor. He said he returned to public service out of a sense of duty to fix our fiscal house. Branstad made a covenant with the people of Iowa to do so. He said in his budget address, “Our new covenant between this state and its people does indeed require significant immediate shared sacrifice.”
Branstad was making over $350,000 at DMU, he has been receiving over $50,000 from his state pension, but owed only $16,000 to the state in taxes. So how is taking $50,000 that he doesn’t even need a significant sacrifice? Branstad needs to either put his money where his mouth is, or stop talking out of both sides of it.
