Brian from Milwaukie asks: "someone on facebook had a thing that said that congressmen get their whole salary for the rest of their lives even if they only do one term. i know they get paid well but that sounds like a lot. is that true?" Brian, this is something that has circulated around Facebook and other social media for awhile. (It's similar to the "Congressional staff don't have to repay student loans" claim.) Generally, the posts make several similar allegations: that members of congress don't pay into Social Security, and that they receive their full salary for life (or that their pension is automatically equal to their full salary). Neither is true. These myths have been circulating for years, and Snopes.com did a good examination of it back in 2001. First off, here's a good rundown (link to PDF) from the nonpartisan Congressional Research Service, as of 2018. It's available through the PolicyBear File Library, too. As it says, most members of Congress make $174,000/year, with leadership positions making a bit more.
Right... OK, so they make a pretty dang good salary, but to put that in context, the Washington Business Journal notes that the median salary for first-year associates at large law firms in D.C. was $160,000 in 2015 (just shy of $170K in 2018 dollars). Plus, the CRS study does point out a few other goodies, such as mailing privileges and certain travel expenses -- items that a private-sector employer would likely supply for their employees.
But let's get back to the retirement issue. What does Congressional retirement look like? First off, they get Social Security like everyone, and they all pay into it. Decades ago, they didn't... but not because they were getting it for free -- because they were in a separate system entirely, the Civil Service Retirement System. But in 1983, Congress passed H.R. 1900, and President Reagan signed it into law, meaning that since January 1984, they are in Social Security.
(And even members elected before then were moved over, though they have an option to use CSRS in addition to Social Security... more on that in a bit.)
Now... what's this about lavish pensions?
Like with their salaries, Congressional pensions are comfortable, but not out of the range of what similar-situated private employers might offer. And it's just plain incorrect to suggest that Congressmen get "salary for life." First off, members must serve 5 years before being eligible for any pension. Even after that, the amount is based on their salary and duration of service (but by law may not exceed 80%, and in practicality would likely be less than 50%).
Here's another CRS study (link to PDF) in the PolicyBear File Library that outlines Congressional pension provisions.
Most members (those elected after 1984) are in the Federal Employees Retirement System. The system allows for several different ways to receive benefits based on age and length of service, but are all subject to a given formula:
This amount is further adjusted by a number of factors, including whether the member was elected prior to 1984 and opted to continue to use CSRS in addition to Social Security, participation in other optional features, and how they structured their payout.
So the bottom line is that none of those urban legend claims are true. Members of Congress do get a really good salary and really good benefits, but nothing that isn't in line with comparable private-sector benefits.
-PB
Commenti