I’ve never actually served on a jury. Because of my profession and the people that I know, each time I get a summons, I have the great privilege of hanging out in the jury selection room for most of the day and watching everyone else get called.
Despite the fact that I never get to serve, I still get to collect my paycheck. In the great Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, you are compensated $9.00 for your time. And that’s not per hour. It’s per day. After three days of service, pay creeps up to $25.00 per day.
That’s actually at the low end of jury pay: a number of other states are actually much more generous. In North Dakota, for example, jurors receive $25 for the first half day and $50 for a full day (with $50 per day thereafter); the state even reimburses for mileage. In New York, jurors receive $40 per day and if your stint goes beyond 30 days, the rate may jump to $46 per day.
Federal jurors are paid $40 per day. After serving for ten days, your pay increases to $50 per day. You can also be reimbursed for travel – including parking.
That money that you receive from serving on a jury must be reported on your federal income tax return. It’s considered income whether it’s $9.00 from the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania or $400 from a lengthy stay at federal court. You report jury duty day on your federal form 1040 at line 21 as “Other Income” and write in the source of the income.
If your employer pays your wages for the day while you are away at jury duty and requires that you turn your jury duty pay over to them, you can deduct it as an adjustment to your income. That amount goes on line 36, annotated as appropriate.
Nobody loves jury duty. Remember this classic?
But jury duty, like tax, is part of the price we pay for living in this country. Under our judicial system, we are guaranteed due process and the right to a jury trial. But that only works if we show up. If we choose not to participate, then the system falls apart.
Remember that the next time you get one of those summons in the mail – and do your part. Even if you have to pay tax on your jury duty pay.
