State legislators in Texas make $600 per month, or $7,200 per year, plus a per diem of $190 for every day the Legislature is in session (also including any special sessions). That adds up to $33,800 a year for a regular session (140 days), with the total pay for a two-year term being $41,000.
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When Liz said that donors owned the Texas legislature on Facebook today, most people probably thought she was exaggerating. She wasn’t. Donations to the Texas lege are the only way the legislature survives at all. They are paid almost nothing, and can only afford to keep their jobs by wooing donors with deals.
Low pay is the number one reason that Texas politics is as corrupt as it is.