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CHEYENNE, Wyo. — Some top officials in Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead's office have received steep pay raises in recent years even as the state has struggled to fund salary increases for other workers.

Base payroll for the governor's office has risen over 11 percent over the past two years, from $1.97 million in 2014 to $2.19 million this year, according to the pay figures Mead's office provided to The Associated Press. The number of employees, meanwhile, declined from 24 at the start of 2014 to 23 at the start of this year, including one employee who works on a monthly contract.

"If you look at the salaries of the people in this office, corresponding with the job that I see them do, and the work that they put in, I think that as I look at other salaries in state government, I think they're appropriate salaries," Mead said in a recent interview.

Annual pay for Kari Gray, Mead's chief of staff, has gone from $126,000 at the start of 2014 up to $175,000 this year — up 38.8 percent over two years. Pay for Tony Young, Mead's deputy chief of staff, has climbed from $105,000 a year at the start of 2014 to $123,500 this year, up 17.6 percent over two years. A couple of other employees in Mead's office who have received promotions have seen raises over 20 percent in the past two years.