The Former Presidents Act of 1958 provides several benefits and perks that are available to presidents after they leave office. The biggest personal benefit that former presidents are entitled to is an annual pension equal to the pay for a Cabinet Secretary, which is $221,400 in 2021. Widows of former Presidents are eligible for a $20,000 yearly pension. In addition former Presidents and their spouses can opt to receive lifetime Secret Service protection.
Below is an overview of the of the additional benefits for former presidents (a more detailed analysis is available in NTUF's November 2020 issue brief, Congress Should Roll Back Perks to Ex-Presidents Costing Taxpayers $4 Million Annually):
Office Space and Staffing Allowances: Starting six months after a President leaves office, the General Services Administration (GSA) provides funding to establish, furnish, and staff an official office anywhere in the U. S.
Travel Expenses: Chief Executives and up to two staff members are reimbursed for up to $1 million in costs annually. Spouses of former Presidents also are eligible for up to $500,000 per year for security and official travel.
Health Benefits: Provided that they had been enrolled in the Federal Employees Health Benefits program for at least five years, former Presidents are eligible for health annuities, similar to all federal employees. (Jimmy Carter is ineligible because he only served a single term and did not hold another federal position.)
Funerals: Presidents are guaranteed a ceremony with full honors and the option to be buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
Secret Service Protection: Presidents are eligible for lifetime protection. The related costs are classified.
Presidents who are removed from office through the impeachment process are no longer eligible for the pension and benefits provided in the Former Presidents Act.
Lifetime Secret Service protections is provided under a separate law so this benefit would not be impacted by removal from office.
Benefits and Pensions Allowances for Former Presidents: FY 2000 - 2017 (Dollars in Thousands) | ||||
President | Total Allowances Received | # of Years Allowances Received from FY 2000-2017 | Average per Year | Share of Total Outlays |
Gerald Ford | $5,189 | 8 | $649 | 8% |
Jimmy Carter | $10,168 | 18 | $565 | 16% |
Ronald Reagan | $4,190 | 6 | $698 | 6% |
George H. | $15,172 | 18 | $843 | 23% |
William Clinton | $19,146 | 17 | $1,126 | 30% |
George W. Bush | $10,493 | 9 | $1,166 | 16% |
Barack H. Obama | $370 | 1 | $370 | 1% |
Total | $64,728 |
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FY 2017 Allowances for Former Presidents (Dollars in Thousands) | |||||
Jimmy Carter | George H. | William Clinton | George W. Bush | Barack H. Obama | |
Personnel Compensation | $0 | $96 | $96 | $96 | $29 |
Personnel Benefits | $0 | $82 | $98 | $98 | $38 |
Pension | $210 | $210 | $226 | $220 | $161 |
Travel | $0 | $78 | $0 | $18 | $3 |
Office Space | $113 | $254 | $511 | $472 | $84 |
Communications | $21 | $50 | $1 | $140 | $11 |
Printing | $7 | $9 | $22 | $40 | $6 |
Other Services | $91 | $67 | $44 | $14 | $20 |
Supplies and Materials | $3 | $4 | $12 | $20 | $3 |
Equipment | $0 | $18 | $35 | $20 | $15 |
Total | $444 | $868 | $1,045 | $1,138 | $370 |
FY 2016 Allowances for Former Presidents (Dollars in Thousands) | ||||
Jimmy Carter | George H. | William Clinton | George W. Bush | |
Personnel Compensation | $0 | $96 | $96 | $96 |
Personnel Benefits | $0 | $65 | $119 | $90 |
Pension | $207 | $207 | $221 | $217 |
Travel | $0 | $72 | $0 | $8 |
Office Space | $112 | $205 | $444 | $440 |
Communications | $15 | $57 | $13 | $64 |
Printing | $7 | $8 | $17 | $14 |
Other Services | $94 | $73 | $26 | $43 |
Supplies and Materials | $2 | $13 | $7 | $35 |
Equipment | $0 | $22 | $26 | $40 |
Total | $437 | $818 | $969 | $1,047 |
FY 2015 Allowances for Former Presidents (Dollars in Thousands) | ||||
Jimmy Carter | George H. | William Clinton | George W. Bush | |
Personnel Compensation | $0 | $96 | $96 | $96 |
Personnel Benefits | $0 | $65 | $119 | $102 |
Pension | $205 | $205 | $218 | $214 |
Travel | $0 | $56 | $0 | $10 |
Office Space | $112 | $207 | $429 | $434 |
Communications | $15 | $60 | $11 | $80 |
Printing | $1 | $10 | $9 | $20 |
Other Services | $96 | $62 | $31 | $64 |
Supplies and Materials | $1 | $10 | $3 | $28 |
Equipment | $0 | $23 | $8 | $50 |
Total | $430 | $794 | $924 | $1,098 |
Data Sources: U.
S. General Services Administration and Congressional Research Service.
NTUF Archive
2017
2016
Pensions and Perks for Former Presidents
2013
The Perks of Being a Former President
Spending Spotlight: Benefits for Former Presidents
Serving as the President of the United States is not your typical job, and this position comes with a lot of responsibility.
Only 46 people have been elected to the office of the President of the United States since 1789. Upon retirement, each of these presidents receives a pension and other perks like Secret Service Protection and reimbursement of official travel expenses.
As of 2021, former presidents receive $221,400 in annual pension, plus free postage, allowances for office staff, paid travel allowances, medical expenses, lifetime Secret Service protection, and a state funeral. Former presidents receive a pension based on their tenure as President, unlike the Vice President who receives a pension based on their role as President of the Senate.
Upon leaving office, a former president receives a taxable lifetime pension equal to the annual basic pay of a Cabinet Secretary. This amount is reviewed yearly by Congress, and as of 2021, it was set at $221, 400. Other extras include free postage for life and payroll for office staff. The pension becomes effective from noon on Inauguration day.
In addition to the pension benefit, former Presidents receive seven months of transition expenses immediately after inauguration. These expenses help the former president transition to private life and pay for office space, communication, and costs involved in briefing the outgoing administration.
If the President resigns from office before the end of their office term, they are entitled to an equivalent lifetime pension and other perks provided to other former presidents. However, if a President is impeached from office, they forfeit the annual pension and most of the benefits provided to former presidents by the Former Presidents Act.
Former presidents receive a lifetime annual pension, alongside other perks like staff allowances, office allowances, travel expenses, and Secret Service Protection. Pensions for former presidents were introduced in 1958 with the enactment of the Former President’s Act (FPA). Before the FPA was enacted, former presidents did not receive a pension.
Congress passed FPA in response to President Harry Truman's modest lifestyle after leaving the presidency. After leaving office, Truman faced many financial difficulties and only lived off his Army pension of $112.56, equivalent to $1000 in today's dollar value. As a result, the enactment of the FPA helped maintain the dignity of the former president with a $25,000 yearly annuity, which Congress reviews annually. While Truman did not benefit from this Act, Former President D Eisenhower became the first beneficiary of the act.
By being the spouse of an ex-president, first spouses and widows of former presidents get a $20,000 annual pension and free postage for life. The spouses also receive Secret Service Protection for their lifetime, but this protection is terminated when the spouse remarries. If a spouse does not receive secret service protection, they receive $500,000 annually for security and travel.
Former presidents and their families get lifetime Secret Service Protection after leaving office.
Congress had reduced the duration of Secret Service Protection in 1994 to 10 years after leaving office but reinstated the lifetime protection in 2012. Secret Service Protection also applies to spouses of former presidents. Children of former presidents also receive Secret Service Protection until age 16.
If the president does not receive secret service protection, the Former President’s Act provides $1 million annually for security services and travel expenses. The only former president who gave up Secret Service Protection is Richard Nixon, who opted to pay for his security to save the government money.
Once they leave office, former Presidents get funding for their office staff and office expenses. In the first 30 months after inauguration, a former President receives up to $150,000 to set up the office, while in later years, the Former President's Act limits the staff funding to $96,000 annually.
If the cost of running the office exceeds this limit, the former President will bear the additional costs.
If the former President had enrolled in the Federal Employees Health Benefits program for at least five years, meaning they served for at least two terms, they are eligible for health annuities. When a former president or a member of their immediate family is ill, they can be treated in a military hospital. The former President can also decide to enroll in private health insurance at their cost.
When a former President dies, they are granted a state funeral with full military honors, and they have the option of being buried at Arlington National Cemetery. The military must consider the wishes of the former President’s family when planning the federal.
When the former President is traveling as an official representative of the United States, the travel expenses are covered by the General Service Administration (GSA).
The travel expenses cover the former President and up to two staff members, and they can be reimbursed up to $1 million in travel costs annually. If the former President is traveling for leisure or holiday, GSA does not cover these travel costs
Since Presidents earn hefty salaries while in office (up to $400,000 annually), you may wonder how they make money after leaving office. Former presidents have pursued different careers after leaving office, and some have become wealthier after leaving office.
Most former presidents have made careers from public speaking, starting charitable organizations, to becoming producers. George Washington stepped down as President and became a Whiskey distiller, Jefferson founded the University of Virginia, Bill Clinton became a spoken-word recording artist, and even won two Grammy Awards, while William Howard went on to become Supreme Court Justice.
Former presidents earn additional incomes from making public appearances, giving speeches, brand sponsorships, and book deals.
Obama charges up to $400,000 for a speaking engagement, Bill Clinton earned $700,000 (adjusted for inflation) for a speech, and Ronald Reagan earned $2.1 million for a pair of speeches in Japan. In 2018, Obama signed a $65 million video production deal with Netflix to produce content for the streaming website and another $25 million podcast deal with Spotify in 2019.
Being the president of a global power is not only honorable and prestigious, but also profitable
The third article of the US Code establishes a presidential salary of $400,000 per year, an additional $50,000 is allocated for annual living expenses, $100,000 for travel (tax free) and $19000 for leisure activities.
Elected presidents, as a rule, are not poor people, and most often donate their salary to various charitable projects. Donald Trump followed the example of Bush Jr. by giving this money to veterans and cancer patients. Presidents take this step consciously, realizing that a prosperous future will depend on the formed political heritage, which will be sold for decades. How to do it? How do ex-presidents make millions of dollars outside the White House?
Federal lobbying laws impose a lifetime ban on official lobbying for former presidents. This is due to the fact that the status of the head of state makes it possible to gain broad connections and influence in various state institutions. The use of these contacts to earn money after resignation, according to the authors of the laws of 1946, 1995 and 2007, creates a danger to the national interests of the United States.
But the laws do not prohibit the former president from engaging in public activities (informal lobbying).
Almost all leaders, starting from Democrat Lyndon Johnson, consulted representatives of various business structures at informal meetings (coffee lobbying). However, managers, lawyers, and accountants do not frame it as a consultation, but as a “gentleman's meeting,” when a businessman is willing to pay money to have dinner with a former president and get an autograph and a photograph from him.
Prices for such meetings depend on many factors: influence during the presidency, ratings, subjective sympathy, etc. Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Herbert Walker Bush, victors of the Cold War, were very popular. Kieron Skinner, the author of numerous books about Reagan, writes that Ronnie met with representatives of the business elite almost every day, and his schedule was scheduled for several months in advance. In general, only officially in the thirteen years after his departure from the White House, more than $40 million was sent to the Ronald and Nancy Reagan Foundation.
In turn, Bush Sr. continued to work actively with the oil business for a long time, informally promoting the interests of the energy lobby through Texas legislators in Congress. Moreover, his father's surviving connections played an important role in George Jr.'s victory in the 2000 presidential election.
In addition to "coffee lobbying", ex-presidents receive substantial fees for interviews, articles and lectures. The mainstream media generously pays the opportunity to speak with "notorious" presidents - Lyndon Johnson (Vietnam War), Richard Nixon (Watergate scandal), Bill Clinton (perjury in the Monica Lewinsky case), and George W. Bush (War in Afghanistan and Iraq) . British journalist David Frost paid more than $200,000 for a series of interviews with Nixon in which the former president apologized to the American people for Watergate. Clinton received more than $1 million in royalties from the media around the world, talking about the intricacies of American politics.
Between 2001 and 2015, the Clinton family earned $153 million from attending social events, lecturing at universities, and speaking at private events and international conferences.
In turn, Bush set a record for media rejections by ignoring multi-million dollar offers from television, radio, newspapers and magazines. However, he received $200,000 for a series of lectures at the University of Houston. Significant funds are earned from the sale of monographs and memoirs. Trump's predecessor, Barack Obama, has signed an exclusive $30 million contract to publish all of his printed materials, including his presidential memoirs. Separately, former first lady Michelle Obama, who is preparing to publish a new book, received $10 million. So far, this is an absolute historical record: for similar activities, Bush Jr. and Clinton earned only $4.5 million in total. Democrat Jimmy Carter earned the least, having received $320,000 for his memoirs.
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Today, Obama is raising funds to open his presidential library and research center, which will store all of the archival documents from his eight years in office. Various media reports that the Obama family has already managed to raise $240 million, which is three times more than Bush Jr. and Clinton combined.
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Image copyright, EPA
Image caption,José Mujica said as he left the Senate that he wanted to spend more time on his farm that does not want to receive a senator's pension.
Mujica has served in the Uruguayan Senate since 2015. He moved to this position after his presidential term ended. Last Tuesday, he also left the post of senator.
Volkswagen Beetle 1984 The former 9005 the president could have stayed in the senatorial seat until 2020, but did not, writing in a letter asking for retirement that he was "tired after a long journey.
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"Despite this, as long as my mind is still working, I cannot give up solidarity and ideological struggle," says the ex-president's letter to the head of the Senate, Lucia Topolansky, Mujica's wife, who is also the vice president of the country.
Mujica is 83 years old. He spent about 14 years in military prisons.
José Mujica, known for his direct, sometimes harsh statements, also apologized to "those colleagues whom he could personally offend in a heated argument."
In 2013, he was forced to apologize to the then-President of Argentina, Cristina Kirchner, after calling her an "old witch" and her husband a "cross-eyed man." This statement got into the press by accident - during one of the press conferences, Mujica did not pay attention to the switched on microphone and did not think that he would be heard.
Image copyright, Getty Images
Image caption,Mujica's three-legged dog (pictured right) became famous with him
In 2016, he said Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro was "crazy as a goat".
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