Hard times in the recession? Not for senior congressional staffers

The 43 staffers who maxed out at $172,500 — the salary cap for leadership and committee staffers — include John Lawrence, chief of staff to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi; Paula Nowakowski, the late chief of staff to House Minority Leader John Boehner; and House Parliamentarian John Sullivan. They earned only slightly less than rank-and-file members of Congress, who make $174,000…

Most of the staffers at the top salary level serve in upper-level committee and leadership office staffs, including staff directors, policy advisers and legislative counsels — positions that have often had direct input on the formation of major legislation, such as health care. Many of those staffers also have law degrees.

But while these top earners are a small percentage of the overall congressional work force, their numbers are growing at a rapid rate under the Democratic Congress. The number of staffers earning within the upper 3 percent of House salaries — currently $163,358 or more — has increased by nearly 39 percent in the past four years, according to LegiStorm data. In 2005, there were 203 staffers earning in the top 3 percent. That number spiked to 304 people in 2008 but then dropped in 2009 to 282, likely caused in part by the economic downturn.