The average income of governors in 35 prefectures rose to 24 million yen in 2002, while that of mayors of 10 of the nation's 13 largest cities fell to 22.37 million yen, with many having their pay and bonuses cut due to tight budgets, according to income reports released Monday.

The average income for the 35 governors, required by local ordinances to disclose their income, rose 540,000 yen from 2001, while that of the 10 mayors' fell 1.14 million yen, according to data compiled by Kyodo News based on the reports.

Tokyo Gov. Shintaro Ishihara topped the governors' list with 126.08 million yen, mainly on royalties from books he published. Nagoya Mayor Takehisa Matsubara had the highest mayoral earnings, at 29.97 million yen.