COLUMBIA--Rank-and-file law enforcement, prison and parole officers are paid far less in South Carolina than their peers in other Southeastern states, a new report shows.

Entry-level Highway Patrol troopers earn $26,632 a year in South Carolina, but that is $8,300 less than their counterparts in neighboring states, the report from the state Budget and Control Board's Office of Human Resources said.

The pay disparity is smaller among Highway Patrol lieutenants, captains and majors, the report said. The patrol's 14 captains are paid 1.4 percent below the region average and its 39 lieutenants are paid 5 percent less on average.

That difference in the ranks also shows up at the State Law Enforcement Division and Natural Resources and Parole and Pardon departments. At the Corrections and Juvenile Justice departments, the gap is greatest between mid-level and some supervisory jobs.

The report said increasing everyone's pay is an expensive and ineffective way to close the pay gap because that "type of increase fails to target the ranks that are significantly below the Southeastern average."

The report recommends, among other things, higher pay for nonsupervisory troopers, SLED agents, Natural Resources offi- cers and prison officers below the rank of captain and some troopers in first-level supervisory positions.

The study, which came out after Gov. Mark Sanford had finished work on his executive budget, lends support to the governor's proposal to increase pay for law officers, Sanford spokesman Will Folks said.

Sanford's budget includes $28 million for law enforcement pay increases, which would amount to about a 2 percent across-the-board increase, Folks said. But Sanford doesn't want across-the-board raises.

"We give Cabinet and other agency directors discretion in their budgets to provide those raises where they feel the need is the greatest," Folks said.

S.C. LAW ENFORCEMENT PAY LAGGING

A state study shows lower-ranking officers at most state law enforcement and criminal justice agencies in South Carolina are paid far less than their peers in neighboring states.

-- Highway Patrol: Entry-level troopers earn an average of $26,632 a year; the regional average is $34,932. Two patrol majors are paid an average of $82,191; the regional average is $78,624.

-- SLED: The 23 lowest-ranking agents earn an average of $31,246; $37,229 is the regional average. The agency's six majors earn $81,166; $76,329 is the regional average.

-- Department of Natural Resources: The agency's 78 corporals average $32,694 a year; $39,677 is the regional average. DNR's education officer, a lieutenant, is paid $58,726; the regional average is $52,384.

-- Juvenile Justice: Three first-level correctional supervisors earn an average of $28,471; the regional average is $33,748. All other categories also were lower than the regional average.

-- Corrections Department: The agency's 93 first-level lieutenants are paid an average of $29,682; the regional average is $36,642. All other categories also were lower than the regional average.

-- Probation and Parole: The agency has 140 journey agents, a second-level job, earning an average of $27,803; the regional average is $33,264. All other categories also were lower than the regional average.

Source: Budget and Control Board, Office of Human Resources.