Report: Perry "retired" early to get pension benefits

Texas Gov. Rick Perry boosted his gross annual salary by nearly $100,000 by formally retiring in January, which allowed him to collect pension benefits and his governor's salary at the same time, according to a story Friday in the Texas Tribune.

The 61-year-old Perry's state salary of $150,000 is now being supplemented by a monthly retirement annuity of $7,698 before taxes, or $6,588 in net income. That brings his annual earnings to over $240,000, the news organization estimated.

"The disclosure is sure to spark criticism of Perry, who has called for sweeping changes to Social Security for average workers and has railed against special 'perks' that members of Congress get," Texas Tribune reporter Jay Root wrote. Perry's communications director, Ray Sullivan, told the Tribune that the move was "consistent with Texas state law and Employee Retirement System Rules."

The governor continues to pay 6.5 percent of his salary into the Employees Retirement System, Sullivan said.

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