[Congressional Bills 115th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 1791 Introduced in Senate (IS)]

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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.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Presidential Allowance Modernization 
Act of 2017''.

SEC. 2. AMENDMENTS.

    (a) Former Presidents.--The first section of the Act entitled ``An 
Act to provide retirement, clerical assistants, and free mailing 
privileges to former Presidents of the United States, and for other 
purposes'', approved August 25, 1958 (commonly known as the ``Former 
Presidents Act of 1958'') (3 U.S.C. 102 note), is amended--
            (1) by redesignating subsections (f) and (g) as subsections 
        (h) and (i), respectively;
            (2) by striking the matter preceding subsection (e) and 
        inserting the following:
    ``(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 the 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 monetary 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 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 of 
        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 the 12-month period, exceeds (if at all)
                            ``(ii) the applicable reduction amount for 
                        the 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 earned income (as defined in 
                        section 32(c)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code 
                        of 1986) of the former President for the most 
                        recent taxable year for which a tax return is 
                        available, 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 purposes of calculating the applicable 
                reduction amount under paragraph (2) of this 
                subsection.
                    ``(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) of this subsection, the 
        Administrator of General Services, in coordination with the 
        Director of the United States Secret Service, shall determine 
        the amount of the monetary allowance that is needed to pay the 
        increased cost of doing business that is attributable to the 
        security needs of the former President.'';
            (3) by inserting after subsection (e) the following:
    ``(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
                    ``(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.''; and
            (4) by adding at the end the following:
    ``(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).''.
    (b) Surviving Spouses of Former Presidents.--
            (1) Increase in amount of monetary allowance.--Subsection 
        (e) of the first section of the Former Presidents Act of 1958 
        is amended--
                    (A) in the first sentence, by striking ``$20,000 
                per annum,'' and inserting ``$100,000 per year (subject 
                to paragraph (4)),''; and
                    (B) in the second sentence--
                            (i) in paragraph (2), by striking ``and'' 
                        at the end;
                            (ii) in paragraph (3)--
                                    (I) by striking ``or the government 
                                of the District of Columbia''; and
                                    (II) by striking the period and 
                                inserting ``; and''; and
                            (iii) by inserting after paragraph (3) the 
                        following:
            ``(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).''.
            (2) Coverage of widower of a former president.--Subsection 
        (e) of the first section of the Former Presidents Act of 1958, 
        as amended by paragraph (1), is amended--
                    (A) by striking ``widow'' each place it appears and 
                inserting ``widow or widower''; and
                    (B) by striking ``she'' and inserting ``she or 
                he''.
    (c) Subsection Headings.--The first section of the Former 
Presidents Act of 1958 is amended--
            (1) in subsection (e), by inserting after the subsection 
        enumerator the following: ``Widows and Widowers.--'';
            (2) in subsection (h) (as redesignated by subsection 
        (a)(1)), by inserting after the subsection enumerator the 
        following: ``Definition.--''; and
            (3) in subsection (i) (as redesignated by subsection 
        (a)(1)), by inserting after the subsection enumerator the 
        following: ``Authorization of Appropriations.--''.
    (d) Conforming Amendments.--
            (1) Title 5.--Subpart G of part III of title 5, United 
        States Code, is amended--
                    (A) in section 8101(1)(E), by striking ``1(b)'' and 
                inserting ``1(f)'';
                    (B) in section 8331(1)(I), by striking ``1(b)'' and 
                inserting ``1(f)'';
                    (C) in section 8701(a)(9), by striking ``1(b)'' and 
                inserting ``1(f)''; and
                    (D) in section 8901(1)(H) by striking ``1(b)'' and 
                inserting ``1(f)''.
            (2) Presidential transition act of 1963.--Section 5 of the 
        Presidential Transition Act of 1963 (3 U.S.C. 102 note) is 
        amended by striking the last sentence.

SEC. 3. RULE OF CONSTRUCTION.

    Nothing in this Act or an amendment made by this Act shall be 
construed to affect--
            (1) any provision of law relating to the security or 
        protection of a former President or a member of the family of a 
        former President;
            (2) funding, under the Former Presidents Act of 1958 or any 
        other law, to carry out any provision of law described in 
        paragraph (1); or
            (3) funding for any office space lease in effect on the day 
        before the date of enactment of this Act under subsection (c) 
        of the first section of the Former Presidents Act of 1958 (as 
        in effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act) 
        until the expiration date contained in the lease, if the lease 
        was submitted to the Committee on Oversight and Government 
        Reform of the House of Representatives on April 12, 2017.

SEC. 4. TRANSITION RULES.

    (a) Former Presidents.--In the case of any individual who is a 
former President on the date of enactment of this Act, the amendments 
made by section 2(a) shall be applied as if the commencement date 
referred in subsections (a)(1)(B) and (a)(2)(A) of the first section of 
the Former Presidents Act of 1958, as amended by section 2(a), 
coincided with the date that is 180 days after the date of enactment of 
this Act.
    (b) Widows.--In the case of any individual who is the widow of a 
former President on the date of enactment of this Act, the amendments 
made by section 2(b)(1) shall be applied as if the commencement date 
referred to in subsection (e)(1) of the first section of the Former 
Presidents Act of 1958, as amended by section 2(b)(1), coincided with 
the date that is 180 days after the date of enactment of this Act.

SEC. 5. APPLICABILITY.

    For a former President receiving a monetary allowance under the 
Former Presidents Act of 1958 on the day before the date of enactment 
of this Act, the limitation under subsection (d)(1) of the first 
section of that Act, as amended by section 2(a), shall apply to the 
monetary allowance of the former President, except to the extent that 
the application of the limitation would prevent the former President 
from being able to pay the cost of a lease or other contract that is in 
effect on the day before the date of enactment of this Act and under 
which the former President makes payments using the monetary allowance, 
as determined by the Administrator of General Services.
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