Pelosi Increases House Staff’s Max Pay to $212k as She Resigns Speakership

Speaker Nancy Pelosi on Friday issued a new directive raising the maximum rate that lawmakers can pay House staff to $212,100 annually — $38,000 more than what members of Congress make. 

This comes just a few months after Pelosi issued a directive increasing the maximum salary staff can earn from $199,300 up to $203,700. Pelosi established a minimum salary of $45,000 for House staff at the same time. 

Since there have been no House rules for staffer salaries for decades, this was considered a landmark move. Instead, House office were allowed to negotiate staff pay separately.

HOUSE QUICKLY APPROVES $1.7T SPENDING BILL, FLEES DC FOR CHRISTMAS BREAK

Speaker Nancy Pelosi issued Friday’s new directive, which raised the annual maximum rate at which lawmakers can pay their staff to $212,000.
(Tom Williams/CQ Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images

Pelosi is expected to give up her position as speaker when the new Republican Congress takes power on Tuesday. The move will help Congress retain high-quality staff who may otherwise be lured into private-sector jobs. 

“As you know, our hard-working, patriotic congressional staffers are integral to the functioning of the House of Representatives,” Pelosi, D.Calif., sent a letter to the House legislators. “To that end, we must do all we can to retain and recruit the best talent in our nation — and to build a congressional workforce that reflects the communities we are honored to serve.” 

Senior staffers will be able to make more than their colleagues who are lawmakers by the new salary cap. Both House and Senate Annually, lawmakers receive $174,000 

Pelosi claimed that the salary hike will bring the maximum salary for housestaffers in line President Biden’s administration.  

Pelosi stated that the increase in pay will bring the maximum salary for house staffers into line with President Biden’s administration.
(AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite, File)

According to Issue One’s report, there was a large pay gap between offices prior to the new minimum-pay rule. 

According to the group, some offices, particularly those managed by progressive Democrats have broad-ranging pay structures with interns making as much as $15 an hour. Others, however, paid their junior staff below $30,000 annually.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Issue One concluded that one in eight congressional offices was not paying wages comparable to Washington’s cost of living. According to the report, approximately 1,200 congressional staffers earn less than $42,610 per year. 

*As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases