Bills
| 3.23.22

Should Wealthy Former Presidents Have Smaller Pensions? (H.R. 1777)

Do you support or oppose this bill?

What is H.R. 1777?

(Updated January 22, 2019)

In 2015 around $2.4 million was set aside for former president allowances — ~$600,000 per president. These taxpayer funded allowances are used to cover costs for offices, staff, supplies, and other services intended to help former Presidents perform duties related to their unofficial public status. This bill would reduce that amount to a maximum of $200,000 per President, indexed to inflation. 

The change would come through changes to the Former Presidents Act to allow each former president to receive a lifetime annual annuity of $200,000 — plus an annual monetary allowance of $200,000 — each adjusted annually for inflation.

The annual allowance would decrease by the amount that a President’s adjusted gross income in a tax year exceeds $400,000. Any former President who holds an appointive or elective position in the federal government that pays more than a nominal amount would be denied the lifetime and annual allowance.

Nothing in this bill would impact the security and protection of a former President or their family members, or the funding to provide that security and protection.

This bill would apply to any former President or the widow of a former President as of the date of enactment.

Argument in favor

Former Presidents earn enough money from giving speeches and writing books, and don't rely on their allowance from the federal government. This bill maintains the payments as a safety net — but saves the money when it isn’t needed.

Argument opposed

Former Presidents should be richly compensated for their service to the country once they leave office. It may not be their old salary, but these payments represent the nation’s gratitude for the president’s contributions while in office.

Impact

Former Presidents, their surviving spouses, their families, and tax payers.

Cost of H.R. 1777

The CBO estimates that this bill would reduce spending by $10 million over the 2016-2020 period.

Additional Info

In-Depth: This legislation was introduced by the Chairman of the House Oversight Committee — Rep. Jason Chaffetz (R-UT) and Rep. Elijah Cummings (D-MD) — who released a joint statement in a press release detailing their bill:

“This simple legislation is designed to end unnecessary government payments to former presidents who earn substantial income from post-presidential work. History shows that former presidents do very well financially after they leave office. In fact, all living former presidents are millionaires, making it very unlikely that they depend upon their taxpayer funded allowances to make ends meet. This legislation also provides an equitable adjustment to taxpayer funded pensions for former presidents and their surviving spouses.”

Of Note: The Former Presidents Act, which this bill amends, was passed in 1958 because prior to that the federal government offered no pension or retirement benefits to former U.S. Presidents. Dwight D. Eisenhower was the first President to leave office and receive a pension, while both Herbert Hoover and Harry Truman began receiving benefits upon the bill’s enactment.


Media:

Summary by Eric Revell
(Photo Credit: "Photograph of the Four Presidents (Reagan, Carter, Ford, Nixon) toasting in the Blue Room prior to leaving for Egypt... - NARA - 198522" by Unknown or not provided - U.S. National Archives and Records Administration. Licensed under Public Domain via Commons)