U.S. GOVERNMENT PUBLISHING OFFICE

WASHINGTON : 

1 

79–010 

" ! SENATE 115TH CONGRESS

2d Session 

REPORT

2018

115–211 

Calendar No. 337 

PRESIDENTIAL ALLOWANCE 

MODERNIZATION ACT OF 2017 

R E P O R T 

OF THE

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND 

GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

UNITED STATES SENATE 

TO ACCOMPANY

S. 1791 

TO AMEND THE ACT OF AUGUST 25, 1958, COMMONLY 

KNOWN AS THE ‘‘FORMER PRESIDENTS ACT OF 1958’’, 

WITH RESPECT TO THE MONETARY ALLOWANCE PAYABLE TO A 

FORMER PRESIDENT, AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES 

FEBRUARY 26, 2018.—Ordered to be printed 


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(II) 

COMMITTEE ON HOMELAND SECURITY AND GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS 

RON JOHNSON, Wisconsin, Chairman 

JOHN MCCAIN, Arizona 

ROB PORTMAN, Ohio 

RAND PAUL, Kentucky 

JAMES LANKFORD, Oklahoma 

MICHAEL B. ENZI, Wyoming 

JOHN HOEVEN, North Dakota 

STEVE DAINES, Montana 

CLAIRE MCCASKILL, Missouri 

THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware 

HEIDI HEITKAMP, North Dakota 

GARY C. PETERS, Michigan 

MAGGIE HASSAN, New Hampshire 

KAMALA D. HARRIS, California 

DOUG JONES, Alabama 

CHRISTOPHER R. HIXON, Staff Director 

GABRIELLE D’ADAMO SINGER, Chief Counsel 

STEVEN G. LOZANO, U.S Government Accountability Office Detailee 

MARGARET E. DAUM, Minority Staff Director 

STACIA M. CARDILLE, Minority Chief Counsel 

CHARLES A. MOSKOWITZ, Minority Senior Legislative Counsel 

KATHERINE C. SYBENGA, Minority Senior Counsel 

LAURA W. KILBRIDE, Chief Clerk 


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Calendar No. 337 

115TH CONGRESS SENATE REPORT " ! 2d Session 115–211 

PRESIDENTIAL ALLOWANCE MODERNIZATION ACT OF 

2017 

FEBRUARY 26, 2018.—Ordered to be printed 

Mr. JOHNSON, from the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs, submitted the following 

R E P O R T 

[To accompany S. 1791] 

[Including cost estimate of the Congressional Budget Office] 

The Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, 

to which was referred the bill (S. 1791) to amend the Act of August 

25, 1958, commonly known as the ‘‘Former Presidents Act of 1958,’’ 

with respect to the monetary allowance payable to a former President, and for other purposes, having considered the same, reports 

favorably thereon without amendment and recommends that the 

bill do pass. 

CONTENTS 

Page 

I. Purpose and Summary .................................................................................. 1 

II. Background and Need for the Legislation ................................................... 2 

III. Legislative History ......................................................................................... 4 

IV. Section-by-Section Analysis .......................................................................... 4 

V. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact .................................................................. 5 

VI. Congressional Budget Office Cost Estimate ................................................ 5 

VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported ........................... 9 

I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

S. 1791, the Presidential Allowance Modernization Act of 2017, 

amends the Former Presidents Act of 1958 (FPA) to modernize the 

monetary allowances and pensions payable to former Presidents. 

Specifically, it revises provisions relating to presidential pensions 

to allow a former President a pension of $200,000 and an additional monetary allowance per year for office space and staff to conduct his or her duties as a former President. However, if a former 


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1 In the 114th Congress, the Committee approved, and the Senate passed, H.R. 1777, the Presidential Allowance Modernization Act of 2016. The bill was approved by the House and the Senate, but vetoed by President Obama on July 22, 2016. The need for the legislation remains the 

same, and some details of the legislation have changed to address concerns raised by former 

Presidents. Accordingly, substantial portions of section 2 of this report have been drawn from 

Senate Report 114–271. 2Wendy Ginsberg & Daniel J. Richardson, Cong. Research Serv. RL34631, Former Presidents: 

Pensions, Office Allowances, and Other Federal Benefits 1 (2016) [hereinafter Cong. Research 

Serv., March 2016 Report], available at https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/RL34631.pdf. 3 Id. at 1. 4S. Rep. No. 85–47, at 2 (1957). 

5 Cong. Research Serv., March 2016 Report, supra note 1 at Summary. 6 3 U.S.C. § 102, note, Former Presidents; Allowance; Selection, Compensation, and Status of 

Office Staff; Office Space; Widow’s Allowance, Termination; Former President Defined (referencing subsection (a)). 7 Barbara L. Schwemle, Cong. Research Serv. IN10759, Allowances and Office Staff for Former 

Presidents, FY2016–FY2018 Appropriations (2017) [hereinafter Cong. Research Serv., August 

2017 Insight], available at https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/IN10759.pdf. 8 3 U.S.C. § 102, note, Former Presidents; Allowance; Selection, Compensation, and Status of 

Office Staff; Office Space; Widow’s Allowance, Termination; ‘‘Former President’’ Defined (referencing subsection (e)). 9 Id. (referencing subsections (b), (c), and (g)). 10 Cong. Research Serv., August 2017 Insight at Tables 1–2. 

President earned income exceeding $400,000 in a taxable year, the 

bill reduces his or her monetary allowance by the amount that a 

former President’s earned income in a taxable year exceeds 

$400,000. 

Additionally, S. 1791 would clarify that a widow or widower of 

a former President is eligible for a survivor’s annuity, and would 

increase the annual annuity threshold from $20,000 to $100,000.1

II. BACKGROUND AND NEED FOR LEGISLATION

Prior to 1958, former Presidents did not receive a pension or any 

other financial assistance from the Federal Government.2 While 

some former Presidents returned to comfortable lives after leaving 

office, others, like President Harry S. Truman, struggled financially.3 When the FPA was enacted in 1958, it was intended to 

maintain the dignity of the Office of the President 4 by providing 

former United States Presidents with ‘‘a pension, support staff, office support, travel funds, and mailing privileges’’ after they leave 

office.5

Under the FPA, a former President receives a pension that is 

equal to the annual pay of the head of an Executive department.6

This amount was $207,000 in fiscal year (FY) 2016 and increased 

to $210,000 in FY 2017.7 Additionally, the FPA provides an annual 

pension of $20,000 to the widow of a former President.8

The FPA also requires Congress to appropriate funds, and the 

General Services Administration (GSA) to provide funds, to former 

Presidents to cover their staffing and office needs.9 The statutory 

obligation arose from Congress’s recognition that former Presidents 

should have funding to continue their required official business. 

In FY 2017, Congress appropriated $2,708,000 to GSA to cover 

the annual allowance of all five living former Presidents, which 

paid for staff compensation and benefits, travel costs, office space, 

communications, printing, office furniture, equipment, as well as 

supplies and materials. Of this appropriation, $511,000 went toward office space rental for former President Bill Clinton and 

$472,000 toward office space rental for former President George W. 

Bush.10


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11 Cong. Research Serv., March 2016 Report, supra note 1 at 1–2 (citing 3 U.S.C. § 102, note). 12 Cong. Research Serv., March 2016 Report, supra note 1 at 3. 13P. Rucker, T. Hamburger, & A. Becker, How the Clintons went from ‘dead broke’ to rich: 

Bill earned $104.9 million for speeches, Wash. Post, June 26, 2014, https:// 

www.washingtonpost.com/politics/how-the-clintons-went-from-dead-broke-to-rich-bill-earned1049-million-for-speeches/2014/06/26/8fa0b372-fd3a-11e3–8176-f2c941cf35f1_story.html. 14 Jennifer Epstein, Bush Made $15M on speaking circuit, Politico, May 21, 2011, http:// 

www.politico.com/news/stories/0511/55372.html. 15Mike McIntire, Clintons Made $109 Million in Last 8 Years, N. Y. Times, April 5, 2008, 

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/05/us/politics/05clintons.html. 16Lynn Sherr, George W. Bush Lands $7 Million Book Deal, The Daily Beast (March 19, 2009, 

3:06 AM), https://www.thedailybeast.com/george-w-bush-lands-dollar7-million-book-deal. 

In addition to the FPA, the Presidential Transition Act provides 

an outgoing President with seven months of transition services, 

and Federal law requires that former Presidents and their spouses 

(and children under the age of 16) receive lifetime Secret Service 

protection.11

Some critics of the FPA say that the statute subsidizes former 

Presidents who do not struggle financially.12 President Clinton and 

President George W. Bush have reportedly earned millions since 

leaving office, with President Clinton earning more than $100 million between 2001 and 2013,13 and President George W. Bush earning at least $15 million for paid speeches in the first two years 

after he left office in 2009.14 In addition to speaking fees, both of 

those former Presidents have reportedly benefited from book deals: 

President Clinton reportedly received a $15 million advance for his 

2004 memoir 15 and President George W. Bush reportedly was paid 

$7 million for his memoir.16

In recognition of the changed circumstances since President Truman left office, S. 1791 would modify the amount provided by the 

Federal Government to former Presidents. S. 1791 would set the 

annual pension for a former President at $200,000 as well as provide an annual monetary allowance of up to $500,000 for office expenses. Both the pension and the annual monetary allowance 

would be subject to cost-of-living increases as provided under title 

II of the Social Security Act. However, unlike the FPA, S. 1791 

would cap the annual monetary allowance at $500,000 as well as 

gradually reduce the amount over a 10-year time period. For the 

first five years the monetary allowance will remain at $500,000 per 

year after which it would be reduced to $350,000 per year for the 

next five years and $250,000 per year thereafter. The monetary allowance will also be reduced by the amount that a former President’s earned income exceeds $400,000 per year. The payment of 

the monetary allowance begins on the day after the date on which 

the individual becomes a former President. 

S. 1791 also increases the pension provided to a widow or widower of a former President—an amount that has gone unchanged 

since the original legislation was enacted in 1958—increasing the 

annual annuity from $20,000 to $100,000. 

The Presidential Allowance Modernization Act of 2017 ensures 

that the Secret Service will work with GSA to determine the 

amount of the allowance needed to pay for the increased cost of 

doing business that is attributable to the security needs of the 

former President. 


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III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

S. 1791, the Presidential Allowance Modernization Act of 2017, 

was introduced on September 12, 2017, by Senator Joni Ernst and 

was referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. S. 1791 was cosponsored by Senators Michael Enzi, 

Deb Fischer, and Claire McCaskill. 

The Committee considered S. 1791 at an October 4, 2017 business meeting. The Committee ordered the bill reported favorably by 

voice vote, en bloc, without amendment. Senators present for the 

vote were Johnson, Lankford, Daines, McCaskill, Tester, Heitkamp, 

Hassan, and Harris. 

IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS OF THE BILL, AS REPORTED

Section 1. Short title 

This section establishes the short title of the bill as the ‘‘Presidential Allowance Modernization Act of 2017.’’ 

Section 2. Amendments 

This section sets the annuity of former Presidents at $200,000 

per year, plus the annual Social Security cost-of-living adjustment, 

and an additional monetary allowance of $500,000 per year that is 

also subject to a Social Security cost-of-living adjustment. Both the 

annuity and the monetary allowance begin on the day after the 

date on which an individual becomes a former President. 

The amount of the monetary allowance will remain at $500,000 

per year for five years, after which it will be reduced to $350,000 

per year for the next five years and $250,000 per year thereafter. 

It sets confidentiality requirements to ensure the privacy of former 

Presidents. It ensures that the Secret Service is consulted on security costs to determine the amount of the monetary allowance that 

is necessary to pay the increased cost of doing business that is attributable to the security needs of the former President. 

This section also outlines the duration, frequency, and limitations of both the annuity and monetary allowance. Among these 

limitations are that a former President is not eligible to collect the 

annuity and monetary allowance when serving in an appointive or 

elective office in the Federal Government. Additionally, the section 

limits the monetary allowance provided to a former President 

based on his or her yearly earned income. If a former President’s 

earned income, as defined in the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, 

exceeds $400,000 within any 12-month period, the monetary allowance is reduced dollar-for-dollar by the amount exceeding $400,000. 

Former Presidents are permitted to hire an office staff of no more 

than 13 individuals, who are compensated by GSA on a reimbursable basis. Likewise, GSA is responsible for providing office space, 

furnishing, and equipment for former Presidents on a reimbursable 

basis. 

This section also increases the pension for the surviving spouse 

of a former President from $20,000 a year to $100,000 annually, 

taking into account annual cost-of-living increases equal to those 

provided under the Social Security Act and includes a technical correction to make the recipient of such pension gender neutral. 


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Section 3. Rule of construction 

This section clarifies and affirms that nothing in the legislation 

alters the funding of the security or protection of a former President or funding for any office space lease in effect of the day before 

the enactment of the legislation. 

Section 4. Transition rules 

This section sets rules for implementing this legislation with respect to currently qualifying former Presidents and their widows or 

widowers. The legislation applies retroactively to former Presidents 

and any individual who is a widow or widower of a former President beginning 180 days after the enactment of this bill. 

Section 5. Applicability 

This section makes clear that the new reduction in monetary allowance should not apply to current former Presidents in such a 

way as to make the former President break or have trouble paying 

a current lease. 

V. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

Pursuant to the requirements of paragraph 11(b) of rule XXVI of 

the Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee has considered 

the regulatory impact of this bill and determined that the bill will 

have no regulatory impact within the meaning of the rules. The 

Committee agrees with the Congressional Budget Office’s statement that the bill contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 

mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act 

(UMRA) and would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments. 

VI. CONGRESSIONAL BUDGET OFFICE COST ESTIMATE

FEBRUARY 12, 2018. 

Hon. RON JOHNSON, 

Chairman, Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, U.S. Senate, Washington, DC. 

DEAR MR. CHAIRMAN: The Congressional Budget Office has prepared the enclosed cost estimate for S. 1791, the Presidential Allowance Modernization Act of 2017. 

If you wish further details on this estimate, we will be pleased 

to provide them. The CBO staff contact is Dan Ready. 

Sincerely, 

KEITH HALL, 

Director. 

Enclosure. 

S. 1791—Presidential Allowance Modernization Act of 2017 

Summary: Under current law, former Presidents receive annual 

pensions that equal a Cabinet Secretary’s basic pay (about 

$211,000 in 2018); the annual pension for a President’s surviving 

spouse is set at $20,000. Current law also provides former Presidents with annual allowances to pay for staff, office space, and 

other related expenses. 


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S. 1791 would decrease former Presidents’ pensions to $200,000 

per year but would increase the pension of a surviving spouse to 

$100,000. Both pensions would be indexed to inflation. For the first 

10 years after leaving office, a former President would receive a 

$500,000 annual expense allowance (also indexed to inflation) that 

would be reduced by $1 for every dollar over $400,000 earned the 

year before; the allowance would eventually drop to $250,000 by 

the end of 10 years. 

CBO estimates that implementing the bill would reduce discre- tionary spending by $24 million over the 2018–2027 period, assuming that appropriations are reduced by the estimated amounts. In 

addition, enacting the bill would increase direct spending by $1 

million. Because enacting S. 1791 would affect direct spending, 

pay-as-you-go procedures apply. Enacting the bill would not affect 

revenues. 

CBO estimates that enacting S. 1791 would not increase net direct spending or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 

10-year periods beginning in 2028. 

By decreasing the pensions of former Presidents, S. 1791 would 

impose a private-sector mandate, as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA). The cost of complying with the mandate 

would be the total decrease in pension income earned by former 

Presidents (who left office before enactment of this bill) and would 

fall well below the annual threshold established in UMRA for private-sector mandates ($156 million in 2017, adjusted annually for 

inflation). S. 1791 contains no intergovernmental mandates. 

Estimated cost to the Federal Government: The estimated budgetary effect of S. 1791 is shown in the following table. The budgetary effects fall within budget function 800 (general government). 

By fiscal year, in millions of dollars— 

2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 2027 2018– 

2022 

2018– 

2027 

DECREASES IN SPENDING SUBJECT TO APPROPRIATION 

Estimated Authorization 

Level ................................ * ¥1 ¥2 ¥2 ¥3 ¥3 ¥3 ¥3 ¥4 ¥4 ¥9 ¥27 

Estimated Outlays ............... * ¥1 ¥2 ¥2 ¥3 ¥3 ¥3 ¥3 ¥4 ¥4 ¥8 ¥24 

INCREASES OR DECREASES (¥) IN DIRECT SPENDING 

Estimated Budget Authority * * * * * * * * * * 1 1 

Estimated Outlays ............... * * * * * * * * * * 1 1 

* = between ¥$500,000 and $500,000. Components may not sum to totals because of rounding. 

Basis of estimate: For this estimate, CBO assumes that S. 1791 

will be enacted near the beginning of calendar year 2018 and that 

future appropriations for the affected activities will be reduced by 

the amount of the estimated savings. 

Spending subject to appropriation 

Under current law, the General Services Administration (GSA) is 

authorized to provide office staff, office space, and equipment to 

former Presidents. Those activities are funded by annual appropriations. S. 1791 would prevent GSA from paying for those activities from annual appropriations and would instead require former 

Presidents to directly fund their own staff, space, and equipment. 

(GSA, however, could still pay for the current leases of former 

Presidents until those leases expired.) CBO estimates that impleVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:44 Feb 28, 2018 Jkt 079010 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR211.XXX SR211

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menting this provision would reduce outlays by $24 million over 

the next 10 years. 

Direct spending 

S. 1791 would reduce annual pensions for former Presidents, increase pensions for their surviving spouses, and entitle former 

Presidents to a nominal allowance. Taken together, the provisions 

would increase direct spending by $1 million over the 2018–2027 

period. Over time, the effect of smaller pensions would offset a 

larger portion of the allowances that are paid as direct spending. 

CBO estimates that enacting the bill would slightly reduce direct 

spending in the final years of the budget window. 

Presidential Pensions. Under the bill, the annual pensions provided to former Presidents would initially drop by about $11,000 to 

$200,000. A surviving spouse’s pension would increase from 

$20,000 to $100,000. Both of those annual amounts would be indexed to inflation. Taken together, those provisions would reduce 

spending for pensions by less than $500,000 over the next 10 years, 

CBO estimates. Although Presidential pensions are paid out of a 

discretionary appropriation, because former Presidents are entitled 

to receive those pensions, CBO considers them to be direct spending. 

Allowances for Former Presidents. Under S. 1791, a former 

President’s expense allowance would decline over time. The amount 

would be set at $500,000 for recently retired Presidents and would 

eventually drop to $250,000 after a President has been out of office 

for 10 years. Under the legislation, the maximum allowance would 

depend on the former President’s earnings the year before and 

would be indexed to inflation. Using publicly available information 

about the income of former Presidents in recent years, CBO expects 

that beginning in 2018, at least three former Presidents would be 

ineligible to receive any allowance (other than for existing leases) 

under the legislation. As a result, implementing the bill would increase direct spending by less than $500,000 in each year over the 

2018–2027 period. 

Pay-As-You-Go considerations: The Statutory Pay-As-You-Go Act 

of 2010 establishes budget-reporting and enforcement procedures 

for legislation affecting direct spending and revenues. Enacting S. 

1791 would affect direct spending by less than $500,000 in each 

year over the next 10 years, and would increase direct spending by 

$1 million over the 2018–2027 period. 

Increase in long-term direct spending and deficits: CBO estimates that enacting S. 1791 would not increase net direct spending 

or on-budget deficits in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods 

beginning in 2028. 

Mandates: S. 1791 would impose a private-sector mandate, as defined in UMRA, by decreasing the pensions of former Presidents, 

about $211,000 for calendar year 2018. The bill would reduce an 

earned benefit of former Presidents by decreasing their federal pension to $200,000 per year, indexed to inflation. The cost of this 

mandate would be the total decrease in pension income earned by 

the former Presidents who left office before enactment of this bill 

and would fall well below the annual threshold established in 

UMRA for private-sector mandates ($156 million in 2017, adjusted 


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annually for inflation). S. 1791 contains no intergovernmental mandates. 

Previous CBO estimate: On November 13, 2017, CBO transmitted a cost estimate for H.R. 3739, as posted on the website of 

the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform on November 10, 2017. Instead of entitling former Presidents to an allowance, enacting that version of H.R. 3739 would authorize the 

appropriation of an allowance up to the same maximums specified 

in S. 1791. CBO’s cost estimates for both bills reflect that difference. 

Estimate prepared by: Federal costs: Dan Ready; Mandates: Andrew Laughlin. 

Estimate approved by: H. Samuel Papenfuss, Deputy Assistant 

Director for Budget Analysis. 

VII. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW MADE BY THE BILL, AS REPORTED

In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the Standing 

Rules of the Senate, changes in existing law made by the bill, as 

reported, are shown as follows: (existing law proposed to be omitted 

is enclosed in brackets, new matter is printed in italic, and existing 

law in which no change is proposed is shown in roman): 

UNITED STATES CODE 

* * * * * * * 

TITLE 3—THE PRESIDENT 

* * * * * * * 

CHAPTER 2—OFFICE AND COMPENSATION OF THE 

PRESIDENT 

* * * * * * * 

FORMER PRESIDENTS ACT OF 1958 

* * * * * * * 

SEC. 102. COMPENSATION OF THE PRESIDENT 

ø(a) Each former President shall be entitled for the remainder of 

his life to receive from the United States a monetary allowance at 

a rate per annum, payable monthly by the Secretary of the Treasury, which is equal to the annual rate of basic pay, as in effect 

from time to time, of the head of an executive department, as defined in section 101 of title 5, United States Code. However, such 

allowance shall not be paid for any period during which such 

former President holds an appointive or elective office or position 

in or under the Federal Government or the government of the District of Columbia to which is attached a rate of pay other than a 

nominal rate. 

ø(b) The Administrator of General Services shall, without regard 

to the civil-service and classification laws, provide for each former 

President an office staff. Persons employed under this subsection 

shall be selected by the former President and shall be responsible 

only to him for the performance of their duties. Each former PresiVerDate Sep 11 2014 01:44 Feb 28, 2018 Jkt 079010 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6659 Sfmt 6602 E:\HR\OC\SR211.XXX SR211

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dent shall fix basic rates of compensation for persons employed for 

him under this paragraph which in the aggregate shall not exceed 

$96,000 per annum except that for the first 30-month period during 

which a former President is entitled to staff assistance under this 

subsection, such rates of compensation in the aggregate shall not 

exceed $150,000 per annum. The annual rate of compensation payable to any such person shall not exceed the highest annual rate 

of basic pay now or hereafter provided by law for positions at level 

II of the Executive Schedule under section 5313 of title 5, United 

States Code. Amounts provided for ‘Allowances and Office Staff for 

Former Presidents’ may be used to pay fees of an independent contractor who is not a member of the staff of the office of a former 

President for the review of Presidential records of a former President in connection with the transfer of such records to the National 

Archives and Records Administration or a Presidential Library 

without regard to the limitation on staff compensation set forth 

herein. 

ø(c) The Administrator of General Services shall furnish for each 

former President suitable office space appropriately furnished and 

equipped, as determined by the Administrator, at such place within 

the United States as the former President shall specify. 

ø(d) [Repealed. Pub. L. 86–682, § 12(c), Sept. 2, 1960, 74 Stat. 

730. See sections 3214 and 3216 of title 39.]¿ 

(a) IN GENERAL.—Each former President shall be entitled to receive from the United States— 

(1) an annuity, subject to subsections (b) and (c)— (A) at a rate of $200,000 per year; and 

(B) which shall commence on the day after the date on 

which an individual becomes a former President; and 

(2) a monetary allowance, subject to subsections (b), (c) and 

(d), at the rate of— (A) $500,000 per year for 5 years beginning on the day 

after the last day of the period described in the first sentence of section 5 of the Presidential Transition Act of 1963 

(3 U.S.C. 102 note); 

(B) $350,000 per year for the 5 years following the 5-year 

period under subparagraph (A); and 

(C) $250,000 per year thereafter. 

(b) DURATION; FREQUENCY.— (1) IN GENERAL.—The annuity and monetary allowance under 

subsection (a) shall— 

(A) terminate on the date that is 30 days after the date 

on which the former President dies; and 

(B) be payable by the Secretary of the Treasury on a 

monthly basis. 

(2) APPOINTIVE OR ELECTIVE POSITIONS.—The annuity and 

monetary allowance under subsection (a) shall not be payable 

for any period during which a former President holds an appointive or elective position in or under the Federal Government 

to which is attached a rate of pay other than a nominal rate. 

(c) COST-OF-LIVING INCREASES.—Effective December 1 of each 

year, each annuity and allowance under subsection (a) that commenced before that date shall be increased by the same percentage 

by which benefit amounts under title II of the Social Security Act 

(42 U.S.C. 401 et seq.) are increased, effective as of that date, as a 


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result of a determination under section 215(i) of that Act (42 U.S.C. 

415(i)). 

(d) LIMITATION ON MONETARY ALLOWANCE.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other provision in this 

section, the monetary allowance payable under subsection (a)(2) 

to a former President for any 12-month period— 

(A) except as provided in subparagraph (B), may not exceed the amount by which— 

(i) the monetary allowance that (but for this subsection) would otherwise be so payable for such 12- 

month period; exceeds (if at all) 

(ii) the applicable reduction amount for such 12- 

month period; and 

(B) shall not be less than the amount determined under 

paragraph (4). 

(2) DEFINITION.— 

(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of paragraph (1), the 

term ‘applicable reduction amount’ means, with respect to 

any former President and in connection with any 12-month 

period, the amount by which— 

(i) the sum of— 

(I) the adjusted gross income (as defined in section 62 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986) of 

the former President for the most recent taxable 

year for which a tax return is available; and 

(II) any interest excluded from the gross income 

of the former President under section 103 of such 

Code for such taxable year, exceeds (if at all) 

(ii) $400,000, subject to subparagraph (C). 

(B) JOINT RETURNS.—In the case of a joint return, subparagraph (A)(i) shall be applied by taking into account 

both the amounts properly allocable to the former President 

and the amounts properly allocable to the spouse of the 

former President. 

(C) COST-OF-LIVING INCREASES.—The dollar amount 

specified in subparagraph (A)(ii) shall be adjusted at the 

same time that, and by the same percentage by which, the 

monetary allowance of the former President is increased 

under subsection (c) (disregarding this subsection). 

(3) DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENT.— 

(A) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph— 

(i) the terms ‘‘return’’ and ‘‘return information’’ have 

the meanings given those terms in section 6103(b) of 

the Internal Revenue Code of 1986; and 

(ii) the term ‘‘Secretary’’ means the Secretary of the 

Treasury or the Secretary of the Treasury’s delegate. 

(B) REQUIREMENT.—A former President may not receive 

a monetary allowance under subsection (a)(2) unless the 

former President discloses to the Secretary, upon the request of the Secretary, any return or return information of 

the former President or spouse of the former President that 

the Secretary determines is necessary for the purpose of calculating the applicable reduction amount under paragraph 

(2) of this subsection. 


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(C) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Except as provided in section 

6103 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 and notwithstanding any other provision of law, the Secretary may not, 

with respect to a return or return information disclosed to 

the Secretary under subparagraph (B)— 

(i) disclose the return or return information to any 

entity or person; or 

(ii) use the return or return information for any purpose other than to calculate the applicable reduction 

amount under paragraph (2). 

(4) INCREASED COSTS DUE TO SECURITY NEEDS.—With respect 

to the monetary allowance that would be payable to a former 

President under subsection (a)(2) for any 12-month period but 

for the limitation under paragraph (1), the Administrator of 

General Services, in coordination with the Director of the 

United States Secret Service, shall determine the amount of the 

allowance that is needed to pay the increased cost of doing business that is attributable to the security needs of the former 

President. 

(e) WIDOWS AND WIDOWERS.—The øwidow¿ widow or widower of 

each former President shall be entitled to receive from the United 

States a monetary allowance at a rate of ø$20,000 per annum¿ 

$100,000 per year (subject to paragraph (4)), payable monthly by 

the Secretary of the Treasury, if such øwidow¿ widow or widower 

shall waive the right to each other annuity or pension to which 

øshe¿ she or he is entitled under any other Act of Congress. The 

monetary allowance of such øwidow¿ widow or widower— 

(1) commences on the day after the former President dies; 

(2) terminates on the last day of the month before such 

widow— 

(A) dies; or 

(B) remarries before becoming 60 years of age; øand¿ 

(3) is not payable for any period during which such widow 

holds an appointive or elective office or position in or under the 

Federal Government øor the government of the District of Columbia¿ to which is attached a rate of pay other than a nominal rateø.¿; and 

(4) shall, after its commencement date, be increased at the 

same time that, and by the same percentage by which, annuities 

of former Presidents are increased under subsection (c). 

(f) OFFICE STAFF.— 

(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of General Services 

shall, without regard to the civil service and classification laws, 

provide for each former President an office staff of not more 

than 13 individuals, at the request of the former President, on 

a reimbursable basis. 

(2) COMPENSATION.—The annual rate of compensation payable to any individual under paragraph (1) shall not exceed the 

highest annual rate of basic pay for positions at level II of the 

Executive Schedule under section 5313 of title 5, United States 

Code. 

(3) SELECTION; RESPONSIBILITY.—An individual employed 

under this subsection— 

(A) shall be selected by the former President; and 


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12 

(B) shall be responsible only to the former President for 

the performance of duties. 

(g) OFFICE SPACE AND RELATED FURNISHINGS AND EQUIPMENT.— 

(1) OFFICE SPACE.—The Administrator of General Services 

(referred to in this subsection as the ‘‘Administrator’’) shall, at 

the request of a former President, on a reimbursable basis provide for the former President suitable office space, as determined by the Administrator, at a place within the United 

States specified by the former President. 

(2) FURNISHINGS AND EQUIPMENT.— 

(A) REIMBURSABLE.—The Administrator may, at the request of a former President, provide the former President 

with suitable office furnishings and equipment on a reimbursable basis. 

(B) WITHOUT REIMBURSEMENT.— 

(i) GRANDFATHERED FORMER PRESIDENTS.—In the 

case of any individual who is a former President on the 

date of enactment of the Presidential Allowance Modernization Act of 2017, the former President may retain 

without reimbursement any furniture and equipment 

in the possession of the former President. 

(ii) PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION ACT.—A former President may retain without reimbursement any furniture 

or equipment acquired under section 5 of the Presidential Transition Act of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 102 note). 

(iii) EXCESS FURNITURE AND EQUIPMENT.—The Administrator may provide excess furniture and equipment to the office of a former President at no cost other 

than necessary transportation costs. 

ø(f)¿ (h) DEFINITION.—* * * 

ø(g)¿ (i) AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS.—There are authorized to be appropriated to the Administrator of General Services up 

to $1,000,000 for each former President and up to $500,000 for the 

spouse of each former President each fiscal year for security and 

travel related expenses: Provided, That under the provisions set 

forth in section 3056, paragraph (a), subparagraph (3) of title 18, 

United States Code, the former President and/or spouse was not receiving protection for a lifetime provided by the United States Secret Service under section 3056 paragraph (a) subparagraph (3) of 

title 18, United States Code; the protection provided by the United 

States Secret Service expired at its designated time; or the protection provided by the United States Secret Service was declined 

prior to authorized expiration in lieu of these funds. 

(j) APPLICABILITY.—Subsections (f), (g) (other than paragraph 

(2)(B)(i) of that subsection), and (i) shall apply with respect to a 

former President on and after the day after the last day of the period described in the first sentence of section 5 of the Presidential 

Transition Act of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 102 note). 

Æ 


SSpencer on DSKBBXCHB2PROD with REPORTS