How Much Money Do Senators Make? My Take on Both Congressional And Staff Salaries

How much money do Senators make? A United States Senator is typically going to make something like $174,000.00 per year, as well as benefits. Congressmen also make this in salary, with even staffers of US Senators and United States Congressmen also bringing in revenue numbers that are similar in nature to these figures. I remember a scene in House of Cards where President Frank Underwood is trying to get Doug back to work, even setting him up on an interview with a rising congressmen in the political sphere. One part that I remember from the interview is where the Congressman offers Doug something like $225,000 to work for him, so the staffers of members of Congress can make just as much in salary as the politicians themselves, especially if they make themselves useful and pivotal to the Congressmen winning re-election. And so, without further ado, lets take a look at How much money Congressmen and Senators make, and what their additional benefits packages might look like.

Other politician and career salaries that I’m planning on covering on this blog in the near future include the following:

Congressmen

Senators

Chief of Staff to Congress

White House Chief of Staff

President Pro Tempore

House Majority Leader

House Majority Whip

Military General

Military Colonel

Navy Seals

Private in the Army

And much more politically-related positions, read on or subscribe to our blog for additional details and information.

How Much is the Salary of a US Senator Per Month?

So lets do some math here. Say the everyday United States Senator or United States Congressman is going to be bringing in something like $174,000 per year. There are 26 pay periods each year, which brings us to $6692.31 every two weeks, not a bad gig overall. Lets assume they have to pay a premium on their health insurance, say $300 every two weeks, and say they also contribute 6% to the Congressional 401K to get the full match, we now have $6090.77 every two weeks hitting their bank account, and this is gross proceeds. This is all pre-tax right now, so lets knock off another 30% in tax withholding here, because most Congressmen also make a lot more than this on book sales, speeches etc.

Knock that number down to $4263.54 every two weeks being direct deposited. That’s about $8527 per month take home, or $111,000 per year in salary being deposited into their bank accounts Not a bad gig surely, this puts them in about the top 8% of American household incomes, but its still somewhat “normal” they’re not flying around in private jets or driving Maserati’s, at least not with that type of money, heck I’ve had affiliate websites that made almost that much money every month, and I didn’t even have to talk to anyone to get that far.

What Are The Benefits of a US Senator, And How Much Money Do Senators Make?

The benefits of being a United States Senator however, is where there salary starts to add up, and I’m not just talking about job security for 6 years minimum, donations that they can use to fund part of their political campaigns, the book deals that they get and speaking fees as a result of being in Congress, or the soft power that could lead them to even better careers (Obama joked about interviewing at Goldman Sachs when he left office in his White House Correspondents dinner speech) after they leave office, I’m talking about their included healthcare package, and other benefits they get. Senators receive, as part of their basic, guaranteed comp package:

A one term senator would be guaranteed $18,000 per year for life in retirement benefits once they reach 65

Add Social Security Income on Top of That

Add Dividends and Interest from Their Retirement Accounts on Top of That

Add Book Sales and Speaking Fees on Top of This

401K

Pension

Health Benefits

$900,000 annual allowance for staff

$250,000 Budget for Travel and Office Expenses

Free Airport Parking

Free house Gym

And more, it is definitely a pretty solid gig!

Do Senators Pay Taxes on Their Salary Income?

Yes, Congressmen and Senators do pay taxes on all of their salary income. After all, they are US Citizens, and the US tax code states that any American who makes revenue must pay taxes on it. So yes, Senators and Congressmen must pay taxes on their income just like anyone else. The only people that are exempt from taxes entirely are soldiers overseas when they are on deployments I believe, as it is kind of the United States way of thanking them a little extra for their service.

Final Thoughts on How Much Money Do Senators Make?

And that’s the gist of how much Senators make. They clear about $200,000 per year in salary, and more with their other combined perks. Most of this is kind of redundant for the majority of Senators and Congressmen anyway, because it really takes tens of millions of dollars to break into Congress or the Senate anyways, so most of them are already very well off. I’ll be writing more military and political articles coming up, as I am enjoying writing them, so be sure to subscribe for more details and information on all things business, politics, and money.

Cheers!

*Inflation Hedging.com

Sources:

https://www.bankrate.com/banking/cds/cd-rates/

https://money.cnn.com/data/markets/

Disclaimer: The opinions and documentation contained within this article and on this blog are the sole property of inflationhedging.com and are not to be copyrighted or reproduced in any manner, else legal action within the rights of the United States legal code could be use to obtain recompense. All articles and blog posts are the sole opinions of the writers of the blog, and are not necessarily in line with what exactly will work for you, you should consult a CPA, Tax Professional, or Financial Professional to determine what exact financial needs are in line with your interests. Also, from time to time, certain links on this website will be used to generate affiliate commissions, in order to support the health and growth of our website, health and business.