Because lawmakers spend so much year after year, the U.S. national debt now exceeds $40 trillion. The biggest drivers of spending include Social Security and major health care programs like Medicare and Medicaid, whose long-term financial challenges require Congressional attention.
When the federal government borrows nearly $2 trillion a year to meet its commitments, every federal program needs a review of savings. This includes providing generous lifetime benefits to a very unique, wealthy class of Americans: former presidents.
Under the Former Presidents Act, taxpayer dollars are used to pay for presidential pensions, staff, office space, equipment, communications and other expenses. The benefits were established in 1958 amid claims that former President Harry Truman was in financial trouble, but estate records released decades later show he was actually a member of the One Percenters, with a fortune today equivalent to more than $90 million.
Although the foundation of the law was flawed, it set the stage for taxpayers to rack up huge payouts. Since 2000, taxpayers have spent an estimated $135 million (adjusted for inflation) on perks and benefits for the former president. This does not include Secret Service and other security-related expenses that are not publicly reported.
This does not include operating expenses for the presidential library, which is managed by the National Archives. It’s worth noting that Barack Obama’s presidential center is not a library; His records are stored in existing archival facilities and accessible digitally, saving taxpayers approximately $3 million annually.
Each former president’s annual pension is equivalent to a Cabinet secretary’s salary — $253,100 in 2026. President Joe Biden is also eligible to receive a separate congressional pension based on his 36 years in the Senate and eight years as vice president, with benefits starting at $166,374. Combined, the dual pensions could provide him with taxpayer-funded retirement benefits that exceed the current president’s $400,000 annual salary.
Office and staff costs account for the bulk of the remaining costs. The Former Presidents Act guaranteed “suitable office space” in a location of each former president’s choice with no dollar limit on rent, allowing taxpayers to purchase offices in high-cost areas such as Washington, D.C. (Obama), Harlem, New York City (Bill Clinton), and Dallas, Texas (George W. Bush).
The annual cost of the former president’s benefits is about $5 million, which is difficult to match with the vast wealth of the recipients. according to estimatethe net worth of living former presidents ranges from approximately $10 million (Biden) to $40 million (George Bush), $70 million (Obama), and $120 million (Clinton). President Trump, whose term ends in 2029, is worth an estimated $5.4 billion.
Additionally, former presidents can earn millions through paid speaking engagements, publishing deals and other private sector ventures. For example, Biden reportedly received about $10 million in advance for his presidential memoir, while Obama’s undisclosed Netflix production deal is estimated to be more than $50 million.
Lawmakers seeking spending reform in this November’s lame-duck session could consider Sen. Joni Ernst’s (R-IA) Presidential Allowances Modernization Act to provide relief to taxpayers. Her changes would establish an annual pension of $200,000, indexed to inflation, and provide additional stipends of up to $200,000 for future office and related expenses.
This allowance decreases dollar for dollar when the sitting president’s outside income exceeds $400,000. Similar legislation passed Congress with broad bipartisan support in 2016, but President Obama vetoed it months before leaving office and becoming eligible for the benefits.
Building on Ernst’s proposal, Congress could also consider whether office benefits should continue for life. Clinton and Obama were relatively young at 54 and 55, respectively, when they left office and may need taxpayers to support their offices for decades. The transition period would allow former presidents to build their post-presidential businesses before taxpayer support dwindles or ends. Any new restrictions should target current former presidents as well; reforming only future public officials would delay meaningful savings by years.
Current accounting methods provide little insight into how former presidents used taxpayer-funded offices and staff. Without this information, taxpayers cannot determine whether these resources were used solely for the president’s post-presidential public duties or if they also helped arrange private business activities, including paid speaking engagements, book projects and media deals.
Legislation is not the only way to reduce these costs. Given the incredible levels of federal debt, former presidents—especially Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, who spent years receiving taxpayer-funded offices—could selflessly stand up for taxpayers and voluntarily give up those benefits rather than wait for Congress to change the law.
The federal government’s debt did not reach $40 trillion due to expenses from the former president’s office. But getting the debt under control will require Washington to reconsider plans large and small, especially those designed to address the “Poor Harry Truman” problem and continue paying the bills of the wealthiest Americans.
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Demian Brady is vice president of research at the National Taxpayers Alliance Foundation. This article is based on the recently released issue brief, The Case for Limiting Lifetime Benefits of a Former President, which can be read at: ntu.org/perks