- US senators and representatives are paid vastly different salaries across state lines.
- Political encyclopedia Ballotpedia estimated how much state politicians earn – a complicated feat, because each state calculates salary differently.
- State politicians in California make the most money, while legislators in New Hampshire only make $100 a year.
- Visit Business Insider’s homepage for more stories.
Politics doesn’t always pay – at least, not on the surface.
The US does not have a uniform method for determining how much legislators earn annually. Political encyclopedia Ballotpedia analyzed the salaries of state representatives from all 50 states to see who makes the most and who makes the least.
Politicians in California – where Democrats control both houses of the state legislature – make the most money, earning on average $110,459 a year. In New Hampshire, state representatives are paid just $100 on average. New Mexico’s state-level politicians make the least, earning $0 for their efforts, though the legislature meets part-time.
Calculating and comparing how much politicians are paid isn’t straightforward. Some states shell out standard annual salaries, while others determine pay based on how many days a politician works. And even the definition of “a day” varies throughout the US when it comes to calculating pay for politicians, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures (NCSL): In some places it’s simply a calendar day, while other states only count “legislative days,” when legislators are actually in session – which also differs from state to state.
Some states, like California, have full-time legislators (defined by NCSL as requiring 80% or more of a full time job), who are typically paid a higher annual salary. Other states have part-time legislators (around the equivalent of half of a full-time job), which pay either lower annual salaries (as in Maine) or a day-rate (as in Montana). Still other states are defined as "hybrid" legislatures - per NCSL, state representatives in these places generally spend the equivalent of over two-thirds of a full time job being legislators.
Keep reading to find out how much state representatives earn around the country, ranked in ascending order of pay.
(Note that this information, which only includes base salaries and not varying per diem rates, is current as of Ballotpedia's last available update on March 1, 2019.)
50. New Hampshire
Both houses of the New Hampshire General Court are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $100/year
49. New Mexico
Both houses of the New Mexico Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $0*
*Per the Las Cruces Sun News, legislators in New Mexico receive a stipend of $161 each day they're at the Capitol or in committee meetings.
48. Kansas
Both houses of the Kansas Legislature are controlled by Republicans, who hold a supermajority.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $88.66/day
47. Montana
Both houses of the Montana Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $92.46/day
46. Wyoming
Both houses of the Wyoming Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $150/day
45. Nevada
Both houses of the Nevada Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $150.71/day for legislators elected in 2016 and $146.29/day for mid-term members.
44. North Dakota
Both houses of the North Dakota Legislative Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $177/day (legislative sessions)
43. Kentucky
Both houses of the Kentucky General Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $188.22/day
42. Utah
Both houses of the Utah State Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $273/day
41. Vermont
Both houses of the Vermont Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $723.27/week
40. Texas
Both houses of the Texas Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $7,200/year
39. Maine
Both houses of Maine's Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $10,131/year
38. South Carolina
Both houses of the South Carolina General Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $10,400/year
37. South Dakota
Both houses of the South Dakota Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $11,379/year
36. Nebraska
The legally-nonpartisan and unicameral Nebraska Legislature has a majority of Republican-affiliated members.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $12,000/year
35. North Carolina
Both houses of the North Carolina Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $13,951/year
34. Rhode Island
Both houses of the Rhode Island General Assembly are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $15,959/year
33. Georgia
Both houses of the Georgia Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $17,342/year
32. Idaho
Both houses of the Idaho Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $17,879/year
31. Virginia
Both houses of the Virginia General Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $18,000/year for the Senate; $17,640/year for the House
30. West Virginia
Both houses of the West Virginia Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $20,000/year
29. Tennessee
Both houses of the Tennessee General Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $22,667/year
28. Louisiana
Both houses of the Louisiana Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $22,800/year
27. Mississippi
Both houses of the Mississippi Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Part-time
Average state representative pay: $23,575/year
26. Arizona
Both houses of the Arizona Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $24,000/year
25. Oregon
Both houses of the Oregon Legislative Assembly are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $24,216/year
24. Iowa
Both houses of the Iowa General Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $25,000/year
23. Indiana
Both houses of the Indiana Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $25,945/year
22. Connecticut
Both houses of the Connecticut General Assembly are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $28,000/year
21. Florida
Both houses of the Florida Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $29,697/year
20. Oklahoma
Both houses of the Oklahoma Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $35,021/year
19. Missouri
Both houses of the Missouri Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $35,915/year
18. Arkansas
Both houses of the Arkansas General Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $40,188/year
17. Colorado
Both houses of the Colorado General Assembly are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $40,242/year
16. Minnesota
Republicans have a majority in the Minnesota Senate, but Democrats have a majority in the House of Representatives.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $45,000/year
15. Delaware
Both houses of the Delaware General Assembly are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $45,291/year
14. Alabama
Both houses of the Alabama Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $48,123/year
13. Washington
Both houses of the Washington Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $48,731/year
12. New Jersey
Both houses of the New Jersey Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $49,000/year
11. Maryland
Both houses of the Maryland General Assembly are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Hybrid
Average state representative pay: $50,330/year
10. Alaska
Alaska's House of Representatives is independent, but Republicans have a majority in the state's Senate.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $50,400/year
9. Wisconsin
Both houses of the Wisconsin Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $52,999/year
8. Ohio
Both houses of the Ohio General Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $60,584/year
7. Massachusetts
Both houses of the Massachusetts Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $62,548/year
6. Hawaii
Both houses of the Hawaii Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $62,604/year
5. Illinois
Both houses of the Illinois General Assembly are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $67,836/year
4. Michigan
Both houses of the Michigan Legislature are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $71,685/year
3. Pennsylvania
Both houses of the Pennsylvania General Assembly are controlled by Republicans.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $87,180/year
2. New York
Both houses of the New York Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $110,000/year
1. California
Both houses of the California Legislature are controlled by Democrats.
Salary Type: Full-time
Average state representative pay: $110,459/year