Cabinet members hold some of the most important and influential positions in the United States government. As key advisors to the president and leaders of major federal agencies, cabinet members have a significant impact on national policies and programs. However, unlike the president, vice president, and members of Congress, cabinet members do not earn an official government salary for their service.
Cabinet Member Pay Overview
- Cabinet members are not paid for their cabinet service. They may continue to receive income from other jobs or investments.
- The president has the authority to set cabinet member salaries, but by tradition cabinet members have not received a government salary.
- Cabinet member pay comes indirectly in the form of enhanced career opportunities, reputation, and influence that can lead to lucrative private sector roles.
- A cabinet position is considered its own reward and compensation for public service at the highest levels of government.
- While unpaid, cabinet roles come with expense allowances, benefits, staff, and other support funded by taxpayers.
Why Cabinet Members Traditionally Are Not Paid
There are a few key reasons why cabinet member positions have remained unpaid since the beginning of the U.S. federal government:
- Service Motivation: Cabinet roles have historically attracted those interested in public service and policymaking instead of pay. Serving is considered a privilege and honor.
- Avoid Conflicts of Interest: An unpaid position helps avoid perceptions that policies or decisions are influenced by money or external compensation.
- Separation of Powers: Having an unpaid cabinet keeps the executive branch separate from Congress, which sets official government salaries through legislation.
- Precedent and Tradition: An unpaid cabinet has become an unwritten rule and long-standing convention since the early days of American government.
So in summary, the lack of direct salary emphasizes service over pay, reduces conflicts of interest, upholds constitutional separation of powers, and continues an early tradition and precedent.
Where Cabinet Member Income Comes From
Though they are not paid for their actual cabinet service, members can still earn income from other sources while serving, subject to certain ethics rules and disclosures. Common sources of ongoing income for cabinet secretaries include:
- Existing Investments: Investment income from partnerships, stocks, bonds, rental properties, mineral rights, and other assets. Divestments may be required to avoid conflicts.
- Government Pensions: Retirement pay, health benefits, or other pensions earned from previous military or government service.
- Corporate Positions: Compensation for positions held such as corporate directorships and limited outside employment. Most cabinet roles require resigning from official corporate positions.
- Spousal Income: Earnings from a cabinet member’s spouse that help support the household.
- Book Deals: lucratove book deals may be signed for publishing after government service.
- Private Sector Opportunities After Service: Cabinet experience often leads to very high earning potential in academia, think tanks, consulting, speeches, and corporate boards after leaving government service.
So in many cases, while not earning an actual salary for their cabinet role, members may have other income sources that allow them to afford serving in a high-level unpaid government position.
Allowances and Benefits Provided to Cabinet Members
While cabinet secretaries are not paid, their positions still come with certain allowances, benefits, and non-salary perks funded by taxpayers:
Expense Accounts
Each department has funds available to pay for a cabinet member’s:
- Official travel and related expenses
- Transportation costs
- Meals and lodging
- Support staff salaries
- Office equipment and supplies
Executive Branch Benefits
Other standard executive branch employee benefits include:
- Health insurance options
- Life insurance
- Disability benefits
Security Details
Cabinet members receive full-time personal security from law enforcement including the Secret Service or Federal Protective Service.
Staff and Offices
Taxpayer dollars supply cabinet secretaries with office space, equipment, and dozens of staff ranging from assistants to drivers, schedulers, speechwriters, and department liaisons.
So while unpaid directly, taxpayers cover substantial expenses and benefits associated with cabinet positions.
How Cabinet Pay Compares to Other Leaders
Unlike cabinet roles, the president, vice president, members of Congress, and federal judges all receive official salaries mandated by law:
- President: $400,000 annual salary
- Vice President: $235,100 annual salary
- Members of Congress: $174,000 annual salary
- Federal Judges: $208,000 – $262,000 salary range
Some key differences stand out between paid senior government officials and the unpaid cabinet:
- Cabinet members cannot earn government paychecks for their cabinet service like the president, vice president, Congress, and judges.
- Pay for senior leaders is set by formal processes like presidential recommendations and Congressional votes, whereas cabinet pay is indirect.
- Earnings for elected or appointed government officials are public knowledge, while cabinet members’ incomes are often more opaque and private.
So presidents, vice presidents, members of Congress, and judges all have mandated public salaries written into law, unlike the president’s unelected cabinet officials.
Estimating Top Cabinet Member Net Worth
While cabinet members may not directly earn a government salary, many still enjoy substantial personal wealth and assets. Some estimates of average net worth for recent cabinet secretaries:
- Obama Cabinet: $7.8 million average net worth
- Trump Cabinet: $2.8 billion average net worth
- Biden Cabinet: $5 million average net worth
Within a presidential cabinet, the highest and lowest net worth individuals can vary dramatically:
- Richest: Betsy DeVos ($1 billion+) under Trump
- Least Wealthy: Hilda Solis ($6 million) under Obama
Cabinet picks often already have existing wealth, lucrative private sector careers, or family money that enables them to accept an unpaid government role. Personal financial disclosures provide estimates of assets, debts, stock values, and other details.
How Do Cabinet Salaries Compare Globally?
The convention of an unpaid cabinet is unique to the United States government. In most other democracies around the world, cabinet officials do receive direct salaries:
United Kingdom
- Cabinet Minister Salary: £67,505 (~$82,000)
- Prime Minister Salary: £75,440 (~$92,000)
Canada
- Cabinet Minister Salary: $157,600 (~$123,000 USD)
- Prime Minister Salary: $178,600 (~$140,000 USD)
Australia
- Cabinet Minister Salary: $211,250 AUD (~$141,000 USD)
- Prime Minister Salary: $549,250 AUD (~$366,000 USD)
France
- Minister Salary: €156,391 (~$164,000 USD)
- Prime Minister Salary: €175,000 (~$174,000 USD)
So most peer nations directly pay salaries to cabinet-level appointees comparable to other senior government officials. The American custom of an unpaid cabinet is unique.
The Future of Cabinet Member Pay
While historically cabinet officials have not received salaries, there are occasional discussions around changing this tradition given modern expectations and career patterns:
- Attracting Qualified Candidates: As living costs rise, the lack of direct pay could deter some qualified candidates from considering a cabinet role. A salary could broaden the talent pool.
- Fair Compensation for Experience: Given the complex challenges cabinet secretaries face, some argue they should earn salaries on par with leaders in other sectors.
- Public Service Disincentives: For potential appointees with families or fewer financial resources, an unpaid position represents a tremendous burden and sacrifice.
- Forgone Earnings: Cabinet members leave behind lucrative private sector careers, inhibiting a return to those roles. A salary could offset this.
- Ethical Concerns: Unpaid service increases reliance on external income sources and assets that could influence policy decisions.
However, the precedent holds that cabinet officials are paid through the non-monetary benefits and opportunities from serving at the highest levels of executive leadership. This convention seems unlikely to radically change anytime soon absent wider reforms.
Key Takeaways On Cabinet Member Pay
Some key points to remember about how much cabinet members get paid:
- Cabinet secretaries do not receive an official government salary for their service.
- Reasons for lack of salary include service motivation, avoiding conflicts, constitutional separation of powers, and precedent.
- Allowances and benefits for expenses, security details, healthcare, staff, and supplies are provided.
- Income comes from outside investments, pensions, corporate roles, spousal earnings, books, and future opportunities.
- Many cabinet officials are independently wealthy with substantial assets and net worth.
- U.S. cabinet pay differs from the salaries of the president, vice president, Congress, judges, and cabinet officials in most other countries.
- An unpaid cabinet remains standard practice, but salaries could attract talent and acknowledge modern challenges.
So cabinet member pay comes mostly from prestige, influence, experiences, and future opportunities rather than an official government salary. This American tradition reinforces public service motivations but faces occasional debate given the demands and sacrifices of the role. The symbolic meaning of an unpaid cabinet continues to override considerations around salaries or compensation for these vital presidential advisors.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do cabinet members get a salary?
No, cabinet secretaries do not receive an official government salary specifically for their cabinet service. The lack of salary maintains the original American precedent for an unpaid citizen cabinet. Cabinet secretaries may earn income from other jobs, investments, pensions, or benefits unrelated to their cabinet role.
How do cabinet members earn money while in office?
They can earn money from outside investments, corporate positions that do not conflict with their cabinet role, spousal income, government pensions from prior public service, and future opportunities like book deals, speeches, consulting, and board positions after their service is complete.
Who sets cabinet member pay?
The President has the authority to set salaries for cabinet members. However, no U.S. president has exercised this power, following the tradition that cabinet members are not paid. Congress would need to pass legislation to establish permanent cabinet salaries.
Do cabinet members get government benefits?
Though they do not get a salary, cabinet members do receive government benefits including health insurance, life insurance, security details, expense accounts for official duties, office space and equipment, and teams of staff and aides.
Are cabinet members rich?
Many cabinet officials already come from backgrounds of wealth, power, and influence before being nominated. However, cabinet members have historically had a wide range of net worths and assets. Overall they tend to be much wealthier than average Americans.
Do cabinet members pay taxes?
Yes, cabinet members must pay applicable federal and state taxes on any income they earn from investments, pensions, corporate positions, spousal earnings, book deals, and any other sources while in office. Their cabinet role itself does not provide taxable salary income.
How much do cabinet members get paid in other countries?
Most other modern democracies directly pay salaries to cabinet officials comparable to other senior government leaders. For example, cabinet ministers in the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and France earn in the range of $80,000-$180,000 base pay along with prime ministers.
Can cabinet members earn income from outside positions?
Cabinet members must resign from official corporate roles and can only receive limited outside income. Earning substantial outside income while serving could create conflicts of interest. All income sources must be disclosed publicly.
Are there proposals to pay cabinet secretaries a salary?
There are occasionally discussions around providing a formal salary to attract talent, acknowledge public service sacrifices, and avoid reliance on outside income. However, this precedent seems unlikely to change without wider government reforms. An unpaid cabinet remains standard practice.
Conclusion
The role and responsibilities of a cabinet secretary come with tremendous influence and impact on national policy. But unlike the president, vice president, Congress and judges, cabinet members traditionally do not receive a government salary. The motivations for an unpaid, volunteer citizen cabinet date back to the origins of the U.S. government.
Potential future changes aside, this convention reinforces the symbolic ideal of cabinet service as a privilege, honor and duty instead of a paid position. While not earning a salary, cabinet secretaries still enjoy expense accounts, benefits, support staff, and future career opportunities. The tradeoffs and sacrifices of an unpaid role at the highest level of governance will continue to attract passionate, qualified Americans dedicated to public service and shaping the national agenda.