How Do Members of Congress Get Really Rich?
Written by
Vance Cariaga
Edited by
Amen Oyiboke
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Plenty of rich people serve in Congress, but most didn’t amass their wealth while in office. Instead, they were rich before they got elected, either through family money or their professional careers.
If you want to get “really” rich while serving in Congress, you’ll have to earn extra income beyond your salary as a lawmaker. That’s not uncommon — but there are restrictions on what you can do.
How Much Does Congress Pay?
The current salary for most Congressional members is $174,000 a year, but those in leadership positions earn more than that. For example, the Speaker of the House earns $223,500 a year, according to the National Taxpayers Union Foundation. House and Senate majority and minority leaders earn $193,400.
Those are very good salaries, considering that the median income for full-time workers in the U.S. is $1,196 a week or $62,192 a year, according to the latest data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Even so, a salary of $174,000 a year won’t necessarily make you fabulously wealthy.
So how do members of Congress get rich? First, it’s important to understand what they can’t do.
Income Restrictions
As previously reported by GOBankingRates, nothing prevents members of Congress from earning income outside their official duties — but there are restrictions.
For example, they cannot earn more than 15% of Level II of the Executive Schedule, which determines the pay scale of political appointees in the executive branch. Members must also file disclosures detailing the source of both earned and passive income, such as stock dividends.
Like much of the general public, many members of Congress earn income through stock investments. But this can get tricky when you are an elected official.
A few years ago, economist Serkan Karadas found a “suspicious pattern” of members of Congress earning higher-than-average returns on their stock investments.
Karadas’ findings suggested that “at least some Congress members were profiting off their jobs.” This could include insider knowledge about upcoming policy changes or economic shifts that might impact stock performance.
Because of ethics rules, members of Congress are generally prohibited from earning more than about $30,000 in outside income from other jobs, according to Business Insider.
Books Can Bring Home the Big Bacon
One way members of Congress can earn substantial income is through book deals, which are not subject to outside income limits. Senators often do especially well because they tend to be better known than House members.
As Business Insider reported, Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., earned more than $440,000 from book royalties in 2022 alone. The following year, eight senators each earned more than $100,000 from royalties, including Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va.; Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas; and Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo.
Whether an additional $100,000 a year qualifies as “really” rich depends on your definition. But the wealthiest members of Congress built their fortunes outside of Washington.
Earlier this year, Finance Monthly named Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., as the richest member of Congress, with a net worth estimated between $300 million and $550 million. Most of his fortune came from building the Columbia/HCA hospital empire.
Other members with fortunes valued at $100 million or higher include former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., whose husband is a successful investor; Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., a tech and telecom entrepreneur; and Sen. Pete Ricketts, R-Neb., whose father founded TD Ameritrade.
Editor’s note on political coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on GOBankingRates.com.
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