By Jill Colvin
DNAinfo Reporter/Producer
MANHATTAN — Gov. Andrew Cuomo announced Monday he is taking a 5 percent pay cut, amounting to about a $9,000 reduction in the new governor's pay.
The news comes ahead of Cuomo's first State of the State speech, in which he is expected to roll out a series of painful across-the-board cuts.
Cuomo, who was sworn in Friday, will receive a salary of $170,050, down from $179,000, according to a statement released by his office Monday.
Lt. Governor Robert Duffy and other senior staffers have also agreed to the salary cuts
"Change starts at the top and we will lead by example," Cuomo said in a statement. "Families and business owners in every corner of the state have learned to do more with less in order to live within their means and government must do the same."
Other politicians, including Mayor Michael Bloomberg, have famously forgone their pay checks altogether.
In his speech Wednesday, Cuomo is expected to call for a freeze on state worker salaries and for a cap on state spending, among other belt-tightening measures, the Daily News reported.
