María Elvira Salazar pledged to donate her entire $174,000 congressional salary to fund a "prosperity center" to help constituents with rent and employment support, although the center had not been established as of late 2021 (Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald).
Prior to her congressional career, Salazar mainly earned income as a television talk show host, media consultant for healthcare companies, and spokesperson for Dr. Orlando Rangel and Mega TV (El Nuevo Herald).
Her media-related earnings, particularly from YouTube and journalism activities, declined sharply from 2019 to 2021, dropping from approximately $131,000 in 2019 to just $5,300 in 2021 (Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald).
Salazar held a significant stake in Cano Health's parent company, receiving up to $250,000 in shares for her TV program; the value of her stock soared to between $1 million and $5 million after the company went public in 2021 (Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald).
She reduced her ownership stake in a pediatric care center, 7 Heaven for Kids, from 50% to 20% before taking office and declared herself a passive investor while in Congress (Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald).
Potential vulnerability: Despite her public pledge to donate her congressional salary, delays and a lack of detail about the actual donation and establishment of the "prosperity center" have raised questions (Miami Herald, El Nuevo Herald).
2020: Salazar Promised To Donate Congressional Salary If Elected According to El Nuevo Herald, "Salazar, que prometió donar su salario si se convierte en congresista." [El Nuevo Herald, 10/21/20]
2020: Maria Elvira Salazar Pledged To Donate Her Congressional Salary If Elected According to Miami Herald, 'Salazar also says in the ads that she supports term limits for politicians and will donate her entire $174,000 congressional salary if elected, though she hasn't said where she'll donate the money.' [Miami Herald, 10/22/20]
2021: María Elvira Salazar Pledged To Donate Her Congressional Salary According to Miami Herald, "Miami Republican Rep. María Elvira Salazar ran ads during her campaign last year declaring that she would donate her entire $174,000 salary to fund a 'prosperity center' to help her constituents pay their rent and find jobs." [Miami Herald, 1/30/21]
2020: María Elvira Salazar Committed To Donating Congressional Salary For A Prosperity Center According to El Nuevo Herald, "El año pasado, durante su campaña, la representante republicana de Miami María Elvira Salazar sacó anuncios por televisión donde declaraba que donaría su salario de $174,000 anuales para financiar un 'centro de prosperidad' que ayudaría a los constituyentes a pagar el alquiler y encontrar empleos." [El Nuevo Herald (Miami, Florida), 2/1/21]
2021: Salazar Created Bank Account To Deposit Congressional Pay Pending Authorization According to El Nuevo Herald, "Salazar también le envió al Miami Herald una fotografía de una cuenta bancaria de internet que dijo haber creado para depositar su cheque. La cuenta no tiene dinero, y Salazar dijo que el cheque deberá depositarse directamente, pero aún no había llegado." [El Nuevo Herald (Miami, Florida), 2/1/21]
2020: Maria Elvira Salazar Promised To Fund A Prosperity Center With Her Congressional Salary According to Miami Herald, "The Miami Republican told voters and media outlets of a plan 'unlike any other congressional office' to fund a 'prosperity center' with her $174,000 salary, using her paycheck to pay for additional staff who would provide job training resources and steer federal contracts to small businesses interested in providing services to the government." [Miami Herald, 2/26/21]
2021: Rep. María Elvira Salazar Forgone Congressional Salary To Attempt Establishing 'Prosperity Center' According to Miami Herald, "Despite forgoing her $174,000 congressional salary for the last nine months in a so-far unsuccessful attempt to establish an employment center, U.S. Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar's finances improved dramatically since entering Congress in January." [Miami Herald, 9/10/21]
2021: María Elvira Salazar Renounced Congressional Salary According to El Nuevo Herald, "A pesar de haber renunciado a su salario de legisladora federal de $174,000 anuales durante los últimos nueve meses, en un intento hasta ahora infructuoso de establecer un centro de capacitación laboral, las finanzas de María Elvira Salazar mejoraron notablemente desde que entró en el Congreso en enero." [El Nuevo Herald, 9/10/21]
April 2025: María Elvira Salazar Claimed Her Congressional Job Was Her Hardest And Least Lucrative Employment According to El Nuevo Herald, "Salazar también sostuvo que 'este es el empleo donde he trabajado más duro y menos me han pagado'." [El Nuevo Herald, 4/19/25]
2018-2020: María Elvira Salazar Disclosed Income Primarily From Talk Shows And Media Consulting For Health Companies According to El Nuevo Herald, 'Según las revelaciones financieras presentadas durante sus dos carreras al Congreso, en 2018 y 2020, Salazar ha ganado en los últimos años la mayor parte de su dinero como presentadora de un programa de conversaciones y asesora de medios para empresas de salud.' [El Nuevo Herald, 2/3/21]
2019-2020: María Elvira Salazar's Earnings From Journalism Activities Decreased Sharply According to El Nuevo Herald, 'Recientemente, el saldo de sus ingresos ha bajado porque que sus ingresos de una empresa que creó para administrar lo que su divulgación financiera de 2018 se refería como "actividades periodísticas" cayeron de $165,000 en 2017 a $20,000 en 2019 y casi a nada en el primer semestre de 2020.' [El Nuevo Herald, 2/3/21]
2018-2020: María Elvira Salazar Reported Income From Consulting For Dr. Orlando Rangel And Media Companies According to El Nuevo Herald, 'Salazar también informó durante ambas carreras al Congreso sobre ingresos por su trabajo como portavoz del Dr. Orlando Rangel, fundador de Rangel Medical Centers, con sede en Tampa, quien entró en asociación con Cano en 2018. Y enumeró los ingresos de consultoría para Mega TV, donde una vez presentó un programa, y para Sima Communications, una compañía de medios también con sede en Tampa.' [El Nuevo Herald, 2/3/21]
2021: Salazar's Media Income Declined Significantly After 2019 According to Miami Herald, "After taking in $131,000 from YouTube in 2019, mostly from advertisements on video views, she made $20,000 in 2020 and just $5,300 in 2021." [Miami Herald, 9/10/21]
2019-2021: Salazar's Youtube Income Declined Precipitously According to El Nuevo Herald, "Después de recibir $131,000 de YouTube en 2019, en su mayoría de los anuncios en las vistas de video, recibió $20,000 en 2020 y $5,300 en 2021." [El Nuevo Herald, 9/10/21]
2020: María Elvira Salazar Sold Majority Of Stake In Pediatric Care Center 7 Heaven For Kids PPEC According to El Nuevo Herald, 'Dijo que vendió la mayor parte de sus acciones el año pasado para inyectar efectivo a la compañía, disminuyendo su participación al 20% en una asociación a tres partes con otros dos socios que poseen cada uno 40% del negocio.' [El Nuevo Herald, 2/3/21]
2021: María Elvira Salazar's Attorney Asserted Her Role As Passive Investor In Pediatric Center While In Congress According to El Nuevo Herald, '"La legisladores es una inversionista pasiva y ese es el único papel que tendrá con la compañía mientras esté en el Congreso", dijo Torchinsky.' [El Nuevo Herald, 2/3/21]
2021: Salazar Reduced Ownership In 7 Heaven for Kids From 50% To 20% According to Miami Herald, "She's since dropped her share of the company to 20%, and said she is no longer involved in the child care center's day-to-day operations. In her 2020 disclosure, her investment in 7 Heaven for Kids was worth between $250,000 and $500,000. In 2021, her disclosure listed the asset as being worth between $15,000 and $50,000." [Miami Herald, 9/10/21]
2019-2021: María Elvira Salazar Received Up To $250,000 In Cano Health Parent Company Shares For TV Program According to El Nuevo Herald, 'continuó como anfitriona de "De Noche Con María Elvira Salazar" en virtud de un contrato que, informó, le ha pagado hasta $250,000 en acciones en la empresa matriz de Cano Health, Primary Care (ITC) Holdings.' [El Nuevo Herald, 2/3/21]
2021: Salazar Confirmed Not Knowing What Would Happen With Her Cano Health Shares Amid Planned Merger According to El Nuevo Herald, 'Salazar, quien dijo que Cano Health salvó la vida de su madre mientras la trataba por COVID-19, le dijo al Miami Herald que no sabe lo que hará con sus 5,000 acciones Clase B de la compañía matriz de Cano Health. También dijo que no sabía cómo la fusión afectaría su inversión.' [El Nuevo Herald, 2/3/21]
2021: Salazar's Stock In Cano Health Increased To Between $1 Million And $5 Million According to Miami Herald, "Salazar's newly filed financial disclosure revealed that stock she owns in a newly public healthcare company, which she promoted on television before entering elected office, skyrocketed in value from $100,000 to $250,000 in 2020 to at least $1 million, and potentially up to $5 million in 2021." [Miami Herald, 9/10/21]
2021: Salazar's Cano Health Stock Value Increased Substantially According to El Nuevo Herald, "La declaración financiera recién presentada por Salazar reveló que las acciones que posee en una empresa de atención médica y que promovió en televisión antes de ocupar el cargo de elección, se dispararon en valor de $100,000 a $250,000 en 2020 a por lo menos $1 millón, y potencialmente hasta $5 millones en 2021." [El Nuevo Herald, 9/10/21]
2020-2021: Salazar's Cano Health Stock Rose Sharply After Going Public According to El Nuevo Herald, "Parte de su compensación por parte de Cano fueron 5,000 acciones de clase B de la empresa matriz de Cano Health, que empezó a cotizarse en bolsa en junio. [...] esas mismas acciones, que según Salazar no ha vendido, valen ahora entre $1 millón y $5 millones." [El Nuevo Herald, 9/10/21]
2022: Salazar Held A Fundraising Advantage Over Democratic Challengers According to Miami Herald, "Salazar by comparison had raised $1.7 million from January 2020 through September." [Miami Herald, 1/18/22]
2020-2021: Salazar Recaudó $1.7 Millones Para Su Campaña According to El Nuevo Herald, "Salazar, en comparación, había recaudado $1.7 millones desde enero de 2020 hasta septiembre." [El Nuevo Herald (Miami, Florida), 1/18/22]