House Staff Minimum Pay Reached $45,000; Senior Medians Fell

Why It Matters

House staff compensation has emerged as a focal point for congressional operations, with a recent Congressional Research Service (CRS) report documenting pay trends across 16 staff position titles in House members' offices from 2001 through 2025. The data reveal mixed compensation signals: while the minimum salary floor for House staff reached $45,000 per year effective January 17, 2025, several senior positions experienced median pay declines when adjusted for inflation. The Chief of Staff median pay was $190,046 in constant 2026 dollars in 2025 and decreased 4.39 percent between 2024 and 2025 in constant 2026 dollars.

The Big Picture

The CRS analysis, based on the House Statement of Disbursements as collated by LegiStorm, tracked pay data across a random sample of 45 House members' offices for each position in each year. Staff members included in the dataset had to hold the same job title for the entire calendar year and receive no pay from another congressional employing authority, meaning the figures represent a subset of all House staff positions. Recorded annual payments may differ from stated salaries because they include overtime, bonuses, and other payments beyond base compensation, though the report excludes paid leave and employer contributions to insurance and retirement benefits.

Beyond the chief of staff decline, other senior roles also saw median pay decreases: the deputy chief of staff median pay fell 0.26 percent year-over-year in constant 2026 dollars, while the legislative director role contracted 1.62 percent over the same period. Staff assistants' median pay increased by 1.30 percent from 2024 to 2025, and schedulers' median pay increased by 1.15 percent from 2024 to 2025. The maximum annual nominal pay for House member office staff reached $225,700 in 2025, up from $140,451 in 2001, though gains in constant dollars have been flatter.