II 

115TH CONGRESS 

1ST SESSION 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. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

SEPTEMBER 12, 2017

Mrs. ERNST (for herself and Mr. ENZI) introduced the following bill; which 

was read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and 

Governmental Affairs 

A BILL

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.

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Presidential Allowance 

5 Modernization Act of 2017’’. 

6 SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS. 

7 (a) FORMER PRESIDENTS.—The first section of the 

8 Act entitled ‘‘An Act to provide retirement, clerical assistVerDate 0ct 09 2002 22:14 Sep 13, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1791.IS S1791
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1 ants, and free mailing privileges to former Presidents of 

2 the United States, and for other purposes’’, approved Au3 gust 25, 1958 (commonly known as the ‘‘Former Presi4 dents Act of 1958’’) (3 U.S.C. 102 note), is amended—

5 (1) by redesignating subsections (f) and (g) as 

6 subsections (h) and (i), respectively; 

7 (2) by striking the matter preceding subsection 

8 (e) and inserting the following: 

9 ‘‘(a) IN GENERAL.—Each former President shall be 

10 entitled to receive from the United States—

11 ‘‘(1) an annuity, subject to subsections (b) and 

12 (c)—

13 ‘‘(A) at the rate of $200,000 per year; and 

14 ‘‘(B) which shall commence on the day 

15 after the date on which an individual becomes 

16 a former President; and 

17 ‘‘(2) a monetary allowance, subject to sub18 sections (b), (c), and (d), at the rate of—

19 ‘‘(A) $500,000 per year for 5 years begin20 ning on the day after the last day of the period 

21 described in the first sentence of section 5 of 

22 the Presidential Transition Act of 1963 (3 

23 U.S.C. 102 note); 

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1 ‘‘(B) $350,000 per year for the 5 years fol2 lowing the 5-year period under subparagraph 

3 (A); and 

4 ‘‘(C) $250,000 per year thereafter. 

5 ‘‘(b) DURATION; FREQUENCY.—

6 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The annuity and monetary 

7 allowance under subsection (a) shall—

8 ‘‘(A) terminate on the date that is 30 days 

9 after the date on which the former President 

10 dies; and 

11 ‘‘(B) be payable by the Secretary of the 

12 Treasury on a monthly basis. 

13 ‘‘(2) APPOINTIVE OR ELECTIVE POSITIONS.—

14 The annuity and monetary allowance under sub15 section (a) shall not be payable for any period dur16 ing which a former President holds an appointive or 

17 elective position in or under the Federal Government 

18 to which is attached a rate of pay other than a 

19 nominal rate. 

20 ‘‘(c) COST-OF-LIVING INCREASES.—Effective Decem21 ber 1 of each year, each annuity and monetary allowance 

22 under subsection (a) that commenced before that date 

23 shall be increased by the same percentage by which benefit 

24 amounts under title II of the Social Security Act (42 

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

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1 as a result of a determination under section 215(i) of that 

2 Act (42 U.S.C. 415(i)). 

3 ‘‘(d) LIMITATION ON MONETARY ALLOWANCE.—

4 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—Notwithstanding any other 

5 provision of this section, the monetary allowance 

6 payable under subsection (a)(2) to a former Presi7 dent for any 12-month period—

8 ‘‘(A) except as provided in subparagraph 

9 (B), may not exceed the amount by which—

10 ‘‘(i) the monetary allowance that (but 

11 for this subsection) would otherwise be so 

12 payable for the 12-month period, exceeds 

13 (if at all) 

14 ‘‘(ii) the applicable reduction amount 

15 for the 12-month period; and 

16 ‘‘(B) shall not be less than the amount de17 termined under paragraph (4). 

18 ‘‘(2) DEFINITION.—

19 ‘‘(A) IN GENERAL.—For purposes of para20 graph (1), the term ‘applicable reduction 

21 amount’ means, with respect to any former 

22 President and in connection with any 12-month 

23 period, the amount by which—

24 ‘‘(i) the earned income (as defined in 

25 section 32(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue 

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1 Code of 1986) of the former President for 

2 the most recent taxable year for which a 

3 tax return is available, exceeds (if at all) 

4 ‘‘(ii) $400,000, subject to subpara5 graph (C). 

6 ‘‘(B) JOINT RETURNS.—In the case of a 

7 joint return, subparagraph (A)(i) shall be ap8 plied by taking into account both the amounts 

9 properly allocable to the former President and 

10 the amounts properly allocable to the spouse of 

11 the former President. 

12 ‘‘(C) COST-OF-LIVING INCREASES.—The 

13 dollar amount specified in subparagraph (A)(ii) 

14 shall be adjusted at the same time that, and by 

15 the same percentage by which, the monetary al16 lowance of the former President is increased 

17 under subsection (c) (disregarding this sub18 section). 

19 ‘‘(3) DISCLOSURE REQUIREMENT.—

20 ‘‘(A) DEFINITIONS.—In this paragraph—

21 ‘‘(i) the terms ‘return’ and ‘return in22 formation’ have the meanings given those 

23 terms in section 6103(b) of the Internal 

24 Revenue Code of 1986; and 

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

2 Secretary of the Treasury or the Secretary 

3 of the Treasury’s delegate. 

4 ‘‘(B) REQUIREMENT.—A former President 

5 may not receive a monetary allowance under 

6 subsection (a)(2) unless the former President 

7 discloses to the Secretary, upon the request of 

8 the Secretary, any return or return information 

9 of the former President or spouse of the former 

10 President that the Secretary determines is nec11 essary for purposes of calculating the applicable 

12 reduction amount under paragraph (2) of this 

13 subsection. 

14 ‘‘(C) CONFIDENTIALITY.—Except as pro15 vided in section 6103 of the Internal Revenue 

16 Code of 1986 and notwithstanding any other 

17 provision of law, the Secretary may not, with 

18 respect to a return or return information dis19 closed to the Secretary under subparagraph 

20 (B)—

21 ‘‘(i) disclose the return or return in22 formation to any entity or person; or 

23 ‘‘(ii) use the return or return informa24 tion for any purpose other than to calVerDate 0ct 09 2002 22:14 Sep 13, 2017 Jkt 069200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S1791.IS S1791
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1 culate the applicable reduction amount 

2 under paragraph (2). 

3 ‘‘(4) INCREASED COSTS DUE TO SECURITY

4 NEEDS.—With respect to the monetary allowance 

5 that would be payable to a former President under 

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

7 the limitation under paragraph (1) of this sub8 section, the Administrator of General Services, in co9 ordination with the Director of the United States 

10 Secret Service, shall determine the amount of the 

11 monetary allowance that is needed to pay the in12 creased cost of doing business that is attributable to 

13 the security needs of the former President.’’; 

14 (3) by inserting after subsection (e) the fol15 lowing: 

16 ‘‘(f) OFFICE STAFF.—

17 ‘‘(1) IN GENERAL.—The Administrator of Gen18 eral Services shall, without regard to the civil service 

19 and classification laws, provide for each former 

20 President an office staff of not more than 13 indi21 viduals, at the request of the former President, on 

22 a reimbursable basis. 

23 ‘‘(2) COMPENSATION.—The annual rate of com24 pensation payable to any individual under paragraph 

25 (1) shall not exceed the highest annual rate of basic 

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1 pay for positions at level II of the Executive Sched2 ule under section 5313 of title 5, United States 

3 Code. 

4 ‘‘(3) SELECTION; RESPONSIBILITY.—An indi5 vidual employed under this subsection—

6 ‘‘(A) shall be selected by the former Presi7 dent; and 

8 ‘‘(B) shall be responsible only to the 

9 former President for the performance of duties. 

10 ‘‘(g) OFFICE SPACE AND RELATED FURNISHINGS

11 AND EQUIPMENT.—

12 ‘‘(1) OFFICE SPACE.—The Administrator of 

13 General Services (referred to in this subsection as 

14 the ‘Administrator’) shall, at the request of a former 

15 President, on a reimbursable basis provide for the 

16 former President suitable office space, as determined 

17 by the Administrator, at a place within the United 

18 States specified by the former President. 

19 ‘‘(2) FURNISHINGS AND EQUIPMENT.—

20 ‘‘(A) REIMBURSABLE.—The Administrator 

21 may, at the request of a former President, pro22 vide the former President with suitable office 

23 furnishings and equipment on a reimbursable 

24 basis. 

25 ‘‘(B) WITHOUT REIMBURSEMENT.—

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1 ‘‘(i) GRANDFATHERED FORMER

2 PRESIDENTS.—In the case of any indi3 vidual who is a former President on the 

4 date of enactment of the Presidential Al5 lowance Modernization Act of 2017, the 

6 former President may retain without reim7 bursement any furniture and equipment in 

8 the possession of the former President. 

9 ‘‘(ii) PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION

10 ACT.—A former President may retain with11 out reimbursement any furniture or equip12 ment acquired under section 5 of the Pres13 idential Transition Act of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 

14 102 note). 

15 ‘‘(iii) EXCESS FURNITURE AND EQUIP16 MENT.—The Administrator may provide 

17 excess furniture and equipment to the of18 fice of a former President at no cost other 

19 than necessary transportation costs.’’; and 

20 (4) by adding at the end the following: 

21 ‘‘(j) APPLICABILITY.—Subsections (f), (g) (other 

22 than paragraph (2)(B)(i) of that subsection), and (i) shall 

23 apply with respect to a former President on and after the 

24 day after the last day of the period described in the first 

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1 sentence of section 5 of the Presidential Transition Act 

2 of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 102 note).’’. 

3 (b) SURVIVING SPOUSES OF FORMER PRESI4 DENTS.—

5 (1) INCREASE IN AMOUNT OF MONETARY AL6 LOWANCE.—Subsection (e) of the first section of the 

7 Former Presidents Act of 1958 is amended—

8 (A) in the first sentence, by striking 

9 ‘‘$20,000 per annum,’’ and inserting ‘‘$100,000 

10 per year (subject to paragraph (4)),’’; and 

11 (B) in the second sentence—

12 (i) in paragraph (2), by striking 

13 ‘‘and’’ at the end; 

14 (ii) in paragraph (3)—

15 (I) by striking ‘‘or the govern16 ment of the District of Columbia’’; 

17 and 

18 (II) by striking the period and 

19 inserting ‘‘; and’’; and 

20 (iii) by inserting after paragraph (3) 

21 the following: 

22 ‘‘(4) shall, after its commencement date, be in23 creased at the same time that, and by the same per24 centage by which, annuities of former Presidents are 

25 increased under subsection (c).’’. 

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1 (2) COVERAGE OF WIDOWER OF A FORMER

2 PRESIDENT.—Subsection (e) of the first section of 

3 the Former Presidents Act of 1958, as amended by 

4 paragraph (1), is amended—

5 (A) by striking ‘‘widow’’ each place it ap6 pears and inserting ‘‘widow or widower’’; and 

7 (B) by striking ‘‘she’’ and inserting ‘‘she 

8 or he’’. 

9 (c) SUBSECTION HEADINGS.—The first section of the 

10 Former Presidents Act of 1958 is amended—

11 (1) in subsection (e), by inserting after the sub12 section enumerator the following: ‘‘WIDOWS AND

13 WIDOWERS.—’’; 

14 (2) in subsection (h) (as redesignated by sub15 section (a)(1)), by inserting after the subsection enu16 merator the following: ‘‘DEFINITION.—’’; and 

17 (3) in subsection (i) (as redesignated by sub18 section (a)(1)), by inserting after the subsection enu19 merator the following: ‘‘AUTHORIZATION OF APPRO20 PRIATIONS.—’’. 

21 (d) CONFORMING AMENDMENTS.—

22 (1) TITLE 5.—Subpart G of part III of title 5, 

23 United States Code, is amended—

24 (A) in section 8101(1)(E), by striking 

25 ‘‘1(b)’’ and inserting ‘‘1(f)’’; 

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1 (B) in section 8331(1)(I), by striking 

2 ‘‘1(b)’’ and inserting ‘‘1(f)’’; 

3 (C) in section 8701(a)(9), by striking 

4 ‘‘1(b)’’ and inserting ‘‘1(f)’’; and 

5 (D) in section 8901(1)(H) by striking 

6 ‘‘1(b)’’ and inserting ‘‘1(f)’’. 

7 (2) PRESIDENTIAL TRANSITION ACT OF 1963.—

8 Section 5 of the Presidential Transition Act of 1963 

9 (3 U.S.C. 102 note) is amended by striking the last 

10 sentence. 

11 SEC. 3. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION. 

12 Nothing in this Act or an amendment made by this 

13 Act shall be construed to affect—

14 (1) any provision of law relating to the security 

15 or protection of a former President or a member of 

16 the family of a former President; 

17 (2) funding, under the Former Presidents Act 

18 of 1958 or any other law, to carry out any provision 

19 of law described in paragraph (1); or 

20 (3) funding for any office space lease in effect 

21 on the day before the date of enactment of this Act 

22 under subsection (c) of the first section of the 

23 Former Presidents Act of 1958 (as in effect on the 

24 day before the date of enactment of this Act) until 

25 the expiration date contained in the lease, if the 

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1 lease was submitted to the Committee on Oversight 

2 and Government Reform of the House of Represent3 atives on April 12, 2017. 

4 SEC. 4. TRANSITION RULES. 

5 (a) FORMER PRESIDENTS.—In the case of any indi6 vidual who is a former President on the date of enactment 

7 of this Act, the amendments made by section 2(a) shall 

8 be applied as if the commencement date referred in sub9 sections (a)(1)(B) and (a)(2)(A) of the first section of the 

10 Former Presidents Act of 1958, as amended by section 

11 2(a), coincided with the date that is 180 days after the 

12 date of enactment of this Act. 

13 (b) WIDOWS.—In the case of any individual who is 

14 the widow of a former President on the date of enactment 

15 of this Act, the amendments made by section 2(b)(1) shall 

16 be applied as if the commencement date referred to in sub17 section (e)(1) of the first section of the Former Presidents 

18 Act of 1958, as amended by section 2(b)(1), coincided 

19 with the date that is 180 days after the date of enactment 

20 of this Act. 

21 SEC. 5. APPLICABILITY. 

22 For a former President receiving a monetary allow23 ance under the Former Presidents Act of 1958 on the day 

24 before the date of enactment of this Act, the limitation 

25 under subsection (d)(1) of the first section of that Act, 

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1 as amended by section 2(a), shall apply to the monetary 

2 allowance of the former President, except to the extent 

3 that the application of the limitation would prevent the 

4 former President from being able to pay the cost of a lease 

5 or other contract that is in effect on the day before the 

6 date of enactment of this Act and under which the former 

7 President makes payments using the monetary allowance, 

8 as determined by the Administrator of General Services.

Æ