Tennessee Governor’s Salary 4th Highest In United States

Image Credit: Gov. Bill Lee / Facebook

By Samuel Stebbins, 24/7 Wall St. via The Center Square and The Tennessee Conservative –

It is generally true that you don’t get into politics for the paycheck. Even though politicians have significant power and clout, as well as the ability to affect the lives of thousands, even millions, of Americans, elected officials make significantly less than most CEOs with that kind of influence.

Annual base salaries of elected officials top out at $400,000 for the U.S. president and can be as little as nothing for a small town council member. Members of the House and Senate earn a base annual salary of $174,000, or about $100,000 more than state lawmakers or the typical county commissioner. There is considerable variation in the salaries of governors too.

In Tennessee, the salary of the governor stood at $198,780 as of 2021, the fourth highest among the 50 states. For additional context, the typical state governor earns between $147,000 and $150,000. Meanwhile, the overall cost of living in Tennessee is estimated to be about 7.8% lower than the national average.

Republican Bill Lee serves as the governor of Tennessee. The governor’s current term began in January 2019 and ends in January 2023. Lee won re-election and will serve another four years in leading the state. Lee led the Governor’s race with 67.4% of the vote compared to Democratic challenger Jason Martin’s 30.5% in a race that was called within 30 minutes of polls closing.

All governor compensation data is from the Book of the States 2021,originally published by The Council of State Governments. Cost of living by state for 2020 is from the Bureau of Economic Analysis.