Why are we paying for all the vacations that Congress members take? Isn’t paying their giant salaries enough? We also have to pay for all the expenses when they decide they want to skip out on work too? I say enough! If they want a luxury vacation or dinner that’s not relevant to work they should start paying for it out of pocket!
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You want to hear something that’ll chap your a** even harder? When Congresspersons retire fully vested, their husband or wife gets a pension too. If we want to cut waste, fraud and abuse, why are we paying retirement benefits to people who didn’t even work for taxpayers and were simply married to someone who did? It’s an outrageous abuse of power and taxpayer funds. End spousal retirement benefits immediately!
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Where does it say that Taxpayers are paying for our Representatives Vacations? And I didn’t know that we’re also paying for things when they’re not working?!? Are they all padding their expensive accts?
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At the same time that each is collecting the pension or if they pass away? Definitely shouldn’t be able to collect at the same time!
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Yes, both the Congressperson and their spouse both receive separate pensions. While people like us scratch and save for retirement funds to fill out Social Security we probably won’t ever get to receive, Senators, Representatives and their significant others will receive a pension not much less than their pay after only two consecutive terms. I’m looking into the rules for Representatives who are fully vested who are later elected to the Senate. I’m researching to see if people like current Senator Adam Schiff, who was a fully vested Representative, will receive two seperate pensions for each house of Congress once he’s vested in the Senate. Stay tuned for that. If he does double dip, that’s more than outrageous. It’s downright infuriating! 
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Sadly, the way they get taxpayers to pay for their expensive trips/meals/hotels is they write it off as a business trip. As long as they talk about something they consider relevant to their work, and it can be over dinner for maybe 5 minutes, according to government policy, they can charge the whole trip off as a business trip.
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This pay that congresspersons receive can stack. Take Biden for example. He was a congressman, then Vice President, and finally President. He will get paid for all 3 for the rest of his life.
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AND when Lindsay Graham was in the guard or reserves (don’t recall which) he used to schedule his trips to a war zone at the end of the month and stay til the beginning of the next month so that he got paid for TWO months - no just a few days. Everyone is a grifter.
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Not only is this true, this is how people like the Obama’s fund vacations for their spouses and children. The President is entitled to AF1 usage for family vacations, but the children’s trips are meant to be billed to the President, who’s required to pay the taxpayers back. If they call it a trip required for a presidential event where family photo ops are helpful, the family members fly, eat, shelter, etc. free on the taxpayer’s dime. We need a Convention of States to change the way our elected officials treat us, bc clearly, they won’t vote against their own selfish interests.
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I’ve just discovered this is also true if you’re a fully vested Representative (3 terms), who is later elected to the US Senate after 2 terms. Adam Schiff will receive two different pensions. One for the House of Representatives and one for the Senate upon being re-elected for two more terms. If we want to stop fraud, waste and abuse, we should start there.
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Please do a little research before putting false information out. “As of 2019, members who participated in the congressional pension system are vested after five years of service. A pension is available to members 62 years of age with 5 years of service; 50 years or older with 20 years of service; or 25 years of service at any age.”
With the exception of Congressional members elected before 1987 that stayed in the old Civil Service Retirement System, they are all now paying into Social Security and Social Security spousal benefits apply. Social Security benefits can be received at age 62 and the spouse can receive Social Security based either their own employment or 1/2 of their spouses benefits, whichever is greater. I’m 75 and collect Social Security. My wife gets 1/2 of my benefit amount because it is greater than her benefit would be under her own employment history.
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I did a ChatGPT query and got this answer to my question:
what pension benefits to members of Congress receive on retirement
Members of the U.S. Congress are eligible for retirement benefits through the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), just like most other federal employees. However, there are some unique rules and limits specific to Congress. Here’s a clear breakdown:
?? Congressional Pension Basics
- Retirement System
Since 1984, all members of Congress are covered under FERS.
Members who started service before 1984 may be under the older Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) or a CSRS/FERS hybrid.
?? Eligibility Criteria
Under FERS:
Age 62 with at least 5 years of service
Age 60 with 20 years of service
Minimum Retirement Age (MRA) (which ranges from 55 to 57, depending on birth year) with:
30 years of service, or
10 years of service (but with reduced benefits)
Most members reach eligibility after at least 5 years of congressional service.
?? Pension Amount
The pension is based on:
Years of service
Highest 3 consecutive years of salary (“High-3 average”)
A multiplier that is more generous for congressional service:
For Congress:
1.7% of the High-3 average salary for the first 20 years of service
1.0% for service beyond 20 years
Example:
If a member served 20 years and had a High-3 average salary of $174,000 (typical congressional pay):
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Pension = 1.7% × 20 × $174,000 = $59,160 per year
?? Pension Limits & Reforms
Members cannot receive their pension before age 50, unless they have 25+ years of service.
No member can earn more than 80% of their final salary in pension.
Congressional pensions are not automatic — members must contribute to the plan during their service.
As of recent years, members contribute around 1% of their salary to FERS and pay 6.2% to Social Security.
?? Notable Facts
Congressional pensions are not “full pay for life” — that’s a myth.
Most pensions are modest relative to public perception.
Members also get Social Security and can participate in the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP) (similar to a 401(k)).
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The tax payers pay for e v e r y t h i n g!
Could you share where you got your info on this? While we can’t hate congress and polticians enough, I did a similar query using AI that someone else did earlier. For it, I used two of your comments, the main post and another comment. Although likely 99% of those in congress and most politicians are corrupt and do make extra money by abusing thier position, this one seems mostly not true as you described. Quoting chatgpt4o (which can maker errors and is woke, as a disclaimer):
Claim: Spouses of retired members of Congress automatically receive a pension.
- False. Spouses do not receive a separate pension just for being married to a member of Congress.
- A spouse can receive a survivor benefit — but only if the member elects to reduce their own pension during retirement to provide that (just like regular federal employees under FERS or CSRS).
- It’s not automatic, and not a full pension — usually 25–55% of the member’s pension.
Claim: Members can receive a pension after two terms (12 years in Senate, 4 in House).
-
Partially true. Members become vested in FERS after 5 years. So:
- A House member serving 2 terms (4 years) would not be vested.
- A Senator serving 1 full term (6 years) would be.
-
However, the pension amount is not close to full pay — it’s based on a formula using years of service and average high-three salary. It’s much lower than their salary.
Claim: Both the member and spouse get “separate pensions.”
-
False. There is no such thing as a “spouse pension” unless:
- It’s a survivor annuity, elected by the member,
- Or the spouse worked in a federal job themselves and earned a pension independently.
Claim: Adam Schiff could get two pensions — one for the House, one for the Senate.
- Technically misleading. Schiff would not receive two pensions. FERS is one system. If someone served in both chambers, all federal service is combined to calculate one pension. It’s not “double dipping.”
Actual Pension Example
A Member of Congress who served 20 years and had a high-three salary of $174,000 might get a pension of ~$52,000/year under FERS — not 100% of pay. It’s far less for shorter service.
Bottom Line
- Spouses do not get a pension unless the member chooses to give them a survivor annuity by reducing their own.
- There is no separate or automatic pension for spouses.
- Members don’t “double dip” for House and Senate. Service is combined under one pension system.
- Some facts in the post are distorted or incorrect, likely to provoke outrage.
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That’s a common misconception, but it’s not how federal pensions work.
Biden — like any federal official — does not receive full pensions for each position separately. Federal retirement benefits don’t “stack” like that.
Here’s the reality:
- Members of Congress earn a pension based on years of service and average salary, capped by law — not their full congressional pay for life.
- Vice Presidents and Presidents don’t get separate pensions that add to congressional pensions. They each receive one pension based on their highest office held — and it doesn’t “stack” with others.
- For example, Biden will receive:
- A presidential pension under the Former Presidents Act (currently about $230,000/year),
- Not a separate pension for being Vice President,
- And not three simultaneous government checks.
Also, he’s not eligible for multiple lifetime salaries from taxpayers. Any claim that he gets paid three full salaries forever is simply false.
Yes, a person who serves as a member of Congress receives a lifetime pension for the time they served. Likewise, if said person becomes Vice President, and later President, they receive pensions for each of those positions. Each position, according to congressional law(which Congress themselves voted for)pays those individuals for the rest of their lives regardless IF they spend only 1 term in office. And their pension is currently set at 100% of their yearly salary.
That’s a common myth, but it’s not accurate. Members of Congress don’t get 100% of their salary as a pension, and they don’t automatically qualify for a lifetime pension after just one term. They must serve at least 5 years to vest, and the pension is based on years of service and average salary—not a full salary replacement. Similarly, presidents and vice presidents do receive pensions, but not all simultaneously and not at 100% of their salary. Let’s criticize perks and spending with facts, not exaggeration.
First of all, we should not be paying them. They are supposed to be servants of the people and only supposed to get a stipend. They are making a career of being a politician where they are always criminals, receiving bribes to pass policies for companies.
They should all be fired and jailed .
I am not sure of all the perks congress gets, but I think it’s time to overhaul congress to only get what the American Public gets. If we have to be on Obamacare (for example) so do they. If we have to pay high property tax with capital gains if we sell, so should they. If they have to pay exactly what the taxpayer pays, maybe they will think twice before signing things into law.