State legislators in California earn the highest base salary among legislators in all 50 states, making $110,459 per year. State legislators in New Mexico do not earn a base salary.
As of March 2019, the states with the highest legislative base salaries were:
- California: $110,459
- New York: $110,000
- Pennsylvania: $87,180
- Michigan: $71,685
- Illinois: $67,836
The states with the lowest legislative base salaries were:
- New Mexico: $0 per year
- New Hampshire: $200 per two-year term
- Texas: $7,200 per year
- South Carolina: $10,400 per year
- South Dakota: $11,379 per year
The legislators in the five highest-paying states worked approximately full-time, while legislators in the lowest-paying states worked part-time, or in-between part-time and full-time (hybrid).
On average:
- Lawmakers in full-time state legislatures (10 states) earned a base salary of $82,358.
- Lawmakers in hybrid state legislatures (26 states) earned a base salary of $41,110.
- Lawmakers in part-time state legislatures (14 states) earned a base salary of $18,449.
Forty-three states also paid legislators a per diem or reimbursed certain expenses on days the legislature was in session.
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