Donald Trump Says No To Presidential Salary

Would you give up $400,000 per year? That’s exactly what President-Elect Donald Trump says he’ll do in 2017. Last night, on CBS’ 60 Minutes, Trump was asked about taking a presidential salary while in the White House.
His answer? “Well, I’ve never commented on this, but the answer is no. I think I have to by law take $1, so
I’ll take $1 a year. But it’s a — I don’t even know what it is.” When CBS news anchor Lesley Stahl reminded him that it was $400,000 per year, he replied, “No, I’m not gonna take the salary. I’m not taking it.”
That might have been Trump’s first comment on the matter, post-election, but he had expressed on the campaign trail that he would not accept a presidential salary, saying, “The first thing I’m going to do is tell you that if I’m elected president, I’m accepting no salary, OK? That’s no big deal for me.”
While we don’t know for certain what Trump’s annual salary might be (he never did release those tax returns), we do know that he is a wealthy individual. Forbes pegs his estimated net worth at $3.7 billion, putting him at #156 on the Forbes 400 (and #324 on the Billionaire’s list). So chances are, he really won’t miss that $400,000.
What we do know is that the President’s official salary is set by statute:
 The President shall receive in full for his services during the term for which he shall have been elected compensation in the aggregate amount of $400,000 a year, to be paid monthly, and in addition an expense allowance of $50,000 to assist in defraying expenses relating to or resulting from the discharge of his official duties. Any unused amount of such expense allowance shall revert to the Treasury pursuant to section 1552 of title 31, United States Code. No amount of such expense allowance shall be included in the gross income of the President. He shall be entitled also to the use of the furniture and other effects belonging to the United States and kept in the Executive Residence at the White House. (Since I know you’re wondering, the salaries of the Vice President and members of Congress are $230,700 and $174,000, respectively,  and are adjusted from time to time. The Speaker of the House makes a little more, at $223,500, and the House Majority & Minority Leaders get paid $193,400.)