$132,000

The amount of annual pay increases and promotions given to staff by California's new Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez the day he was sworn in this month, including a $65,000 raise to his chief of staff. While in years past it has not been unusual for a new Assembly leader to raise pay for key or underpaid staff members, the new pay increases come as the state is reeling from recession, with thrice-monthly furloughs imposed on most state workers and the state facing a projected budget deficit of up to $20 billion through June 2011.