How Much Money Does a Senator Make?
Senators serve in the upper chambers of the United States Congress and state legislatures across the country. Members of the U.S. Senate debate legislation, ratify treaties and vote to confirm presidential appointments. State senators, like their counterparts in state houses of representatives, draft bills, debate legislation and represent the interests of the districts that elect them. U.S. senators receive annual salaries topping $170,000 a year. State senators' salaries, however, vary widely across states.
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U.S. Senator Salaries
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According to the U.S. Senate's website, the 100 members of the Senate (two senators from each of the 50 states) earned an annual salary of $174,000 in 2011. Information on the website indicates that senators have earned $174,000 a year since 2009. In 2008, members of the Senate earned $169,300 a year.
History
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The Senate's website displays salary data for members of the U.S. Senate since 1789, the year of the first U.S. Congress. From 1789 to 1815, senators received no annual salaries, but earned $6 per day. From 1815 to 1817, senators received $1,500 a year. Throughout the 19th century and into the 20th century, senators' salaries increased, from $3,000 a year in the 1850s to more than $57,000 a year by the late 1970s. Salaries for U.S. senators cracked the six-figure level in 1991, when they received $101,900 a year.
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Senate Leaders
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Since the early 1980s, the leaders of the U.S. Senate, such as the majority and minority leaders, as well as the president pro tempore, have received higher salaries than the other senators, according to the Senate's website. As of 2011, the majority and minority leaders and president pro tempore earned $193,400 a year.
State Senators
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In contrast to the U.S. Senate, most state senators receive much lower salaries. In some states, serving in a state legislature is a part-time job, with members earning low salaries or per diem allowances. Other states, however, pay generous salaries to their state lawmakers. According to 2009 salary data from the National Conference of State Legislatures, state senators in California, Michigan and New York earned the highest annual salaries. California state senators earned more than $95,000 a year, while state senators in Michigan and New York each earned more than $79,000 a year. In addition to annual salaries, state senators receive a per diem allowance for living expenditures while the state legislature is in session.
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