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The Average Salary of a Louisiana State Senator

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Louisiana state senators serve as elected officials in the upper house of the state legislature of Louisiana. Thirty-nine Louisiana state senators each serve four year terms between elections. The salary for Louisiana state senators is split among a base salary, per-diem pay and extra salary for leading committees or the legislative body.

Average Salary for Louisiana State Senators

The average salary for a Louisiana state senator is $35,384 in odd-numbered years and $38,959 in even-numbered years. The salary for Louisiana state senators changes depending on the year because the amount of per-diem pay changes based on the number of days spent in legislative session.

Breakdown of Salary for Louisiana State Senators

All Louisiana state senators earn $16,800 in base salary and $6,000 per year in expense reimbursement. For each day the state senate remains in session, Louisiana state senators earn $143 per day in per-diem pay.

Additional Compensation for Louisiana State Senators

Some Louisiana state senators earn additional salary on top of their base pay and per-diem. The president of the state senate earns $32,000 as a base salary and the president pro tempore earns $24,500 as a base salary. The senate chair for the legislative budget committee receives a base salary of $28,000.

Salaries for Other State Senators

The average salary for state senators across the U.S. was $49,870. While this salary is significantly higher than the salary for Louisiana state senators, many other states have full-time legislatures. Because the Louisiana legislature is part-time, the salary for its state senators is adjusted for the part-time nature of their positions.

References
Writer

Based in Boston, Nolan Kido has been writing professionally since 2006. He holds a master's degree in accounting and worked in the real estate and banking industries prior to his current career. Kido has contributed to three personal finance books and specializes in writing about taxes and investments.

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John Elk/Lonely Planet Images/GettyImages