Who’s the Second Highest Paid U.S. Government Official?

You probably know that the President of the United States has the highest salary of any government official, but did you know who ranks second? If you thought it might be the vice-president or leader of Congress, you would be incorrect. The highest-paid official behind the president is the Postmaster General, the chief executive of the United States Postal Service.

The Postmaster General makes $276,840 per year, just behind the president’s salary at $400,000, which is the highest in the U.S. Government. Why does this position have such a high salary as opposed to others in Congress and the executive branch?

It came about because of a 2006 law to make the salaries of the top positions in the US Postal Service competitive with positions in the private sector. Officials in the postal service can make up to 120% of the salary of the vice president. The current salary of the vice president is $230,700. This doesn’t include bonuses and other benefits the postmaster general can receive which push the amount even higher.

The office of the Postmaster General is actually older than the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution since it was established in 1775 by the Continental Congress. Benjamin Franklin was the first Postmaster General. The Postal Service was known as the Post Office Department until…