Rank-and-file artists and songwriters may be struggling these days, but the Washington D.C. lobbyists who are guiding the interests of the major labels are doing just fine. According to the Recording Industry Association of America’s 2013 tax filing, the trade group spent $6.3 million on wages, with chairman and CEO Cary Sherman earning a total of $1,630,364, including a $517,667 bonus.

Other RIAA execs received far less, however. CFO Deborah Moore earned a total of $373,119. Steve Marks, evp and general counsel, made $728,959. Mitch Glazer, senior evp, made $776,616 overall, and like Marks received a $125,000 bonus. Brad Buckles, evp anti-piracy, earned a total of $509,989. Jennifer Pariser, svp of litigation, made $368,896 (or $368,821 if you don’t count her $75 bonus). Neil Turkewitz, evp international, earned $657,952. Michele Ballantyne, evp of public policy and industry relations, pulled in a total of $524,529. Jonathan Lamy, evp of communications, made $367,819. Finally, David Hughes, svp of technology, made around $328,000.

The RIAA also compensated 11 independent contractors at least $100,000 during the tax year, for various legal, IT and lobbying services. In-house lobbyist Rose Kindel was paid $160,111. The association’s numerous political contributions in 2013 included $2,500 donations to New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and former Nebraska Attorney General Jon Bruning, plus $8,000 to a Florida group called And Justice for All.

According to the filing, total revenue was at $24.1 million for the year, however expenses ranging from wages ($6.3 million), payments to affiliates ($2.6 million) and lobbying ($2.2 million) brought its after-expenses revenue to $-325,935. The RIAA’s net assets are listed at over $6.2 million.

The RIAA refused to comment on the filing.

You can peruse the entire filing here, as uploaded by TorrentFreak. [Billboard]