On Friday (December 30), Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA.) announced that the House would be raising the maximum salary for House staff to $212,100.
Pelosi made the announcement in a Dear Colleague letter, describing House staff as “hard-working [and] patriotic” and being “integral to the functioning of the House of Representatives.”
The House Speaker highlighted that the staff enabled the Representatives to “effectively carry out… legislative and constituent responsibilities.”
She then explained that the increase would help “retain and recruit the best talent in our nation.”
In 2021, Pelosi increased the maximum salary to $199,300 after more than a decade of staff salaries stagnating following a salary freeze put in place in 2009.
Then in May of 2022, Pelosi raised the income cap again to $203,700 for House staffers that would maintain their salary with Senate staffers.
The 2021 increase for House staffers meant they could be making more than the lawmakers, who are technically their bosses.
Rank-and-file Congressional members earn $174,000 a year, while those with Congressional leadership earn slightly more.
Friday’s increase comes months after Pelosi announced a $45,000 minimum salary in May, becoming the first time Congress has had a salary floor.
Pelosi’s announcement comes on the last day of her role as Speaker, as Democrats prepare to be in the minority.
The new cap also brings the salaries of House staffers in line with the salaries of staffers in the Biden administration.
Additionally, the minimum salary solves the wide pay divergence experienced by House staffers.
