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San Francisco Officials Due For Pay Raise Despite Deficit

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS) – Elected officials in San Francisco are due to get pay raises this year despite a projected $306 million budget deficit.

The raises were approved earlier this week by the San Francisco Civil Service Commission and include a $2,000 bump for supervisors and a $5,000 salary increase for the mayor. All other elected officials will get similar pay hikes.

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee took a salary cut of $7,000 when he was appointed mayor and said he'll leave this new raise on the table as well.

"I'll be making decisions that really will be cutting programs and balancing the budget," he said. "In light of that, I'm not going to have any enjoyment, even if it was a cost of living adjustment."

KCBS' Barbara Taylor Reports:

San Francisco Supervisors John Avalos and David Chiu are both running for mayor. Avalos said he'll give back his raise by taking furlough days. And Chiu said he believes it wouldn't be right to take a pay hike.

"I'll be giving back the raise. While it won't close the deficit, I do think that it's important for public officials to lead by example," said Chiu.

Mayor Lee was scheduled to earn $252,000 and the supervisors about $98,000 in the next fiscal year.

(© 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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