The recent insider trading charges brought against former Rep. Stephen Buyer, R-Ind., are just the latest criminal ethics violations to be brought against a bipartisan line of members of Congress. It seems bad habits are hard to break: despite repeated attempts at reform, Congress has proven laughably bad at holding its members accountable.
If Buyer is convicted and his taxpayer-funded pension stripped, he would be the first member of Congress ever held accountable under the laws that Congress has passed that attempt to cut off taxpayer pensions for bad behavior.
Since 1954, public officials could lose their annuities for crimes of treason or espionage. Congress passed the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act (HLOGA) in 2007 because of public outrage after scandals that sent big names in Washington to the big house. These included the likes of Republican Randy “Duke” Cunningham and Democrat Dan Rostenkowski, both sent to jail for corruption and were collecting annual pensions worth $64,000 and $126,000, respectively.
HLOGA targeted corruption-related crimes and was strengthened in 2012 by the STOCK Act. Upon final conviction for any listed crimes, a member is supposed to have his or her pension stripped. Unfortunately, this has proven far too easy for even sentenced criminals to avoid.
A recent review was conducted of the cases of the 11 members of Congress convicted of crimes since 2007 and who had been in office long enough to qualify for a pension, plus two who were censured by the House of Representatives for serious ethical violations. Not one of these individuals had their pension stripped, leaving taxpayers on the hook for nearly $4 million in benefits.
Some remained eligible because their crimes were committed before the 2007 enactment of HLOGA. Rick Renzi, R-Ariz., and Chris Collins, R-N.Y., should have lost their pensions but were pardoned by President Donald Trump, despite his pledge to “drain the swamp.” Since the two laws target only certain corruption crimes, convicted former members Denny Hastert, R-Ill., and Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., remain eligible for pensions despite their sordid crimes.
Other lawmakers have taken advantage of the fact that HLOGA and the STOCK act do not kick in until a member is “finally convicted,” encouraging congressional criminals to file appeals to keep getting paid. In 2016, Chaka Fattah, D-Pa., was sentenced to 10 years for multiple counts of money laundering and misuse of federal and charitable funds. He has remained eligible for his pension because he had filed an appeal. This process can drag on for years.
Because convicted members may face legal costs and owe hefty fines for their crimes, they are heavily incentivized to appeal to keep the pension money flowing. Members can also avoid losing pensions by pleading guilty to crimes not covered by the reform laws.
Corrine Brown, D-Fla., was sentenced to jail in 2017 for using a charity’s money as a personal slush fund. After a lengthy appeal, she faced a retrial this year but struck a plea deal to lesser charges — charges that don’t include the violations that forfeit a former member’s pension — and she remains eligible for a $71,000 annual pension. She’ll need that to help pay her $62,000 in restitution. Brown is also running for Congress again.
Jesse Jackson Jr., D-Ill., pleaded guilty in 2013 to fraud. This should deprive him of his pension, but we won’t find out for a few years. The Office of Personnel Management, which oversees the pension program, won’t make a determination of his eligibility until he applies for the benefit when he turns 62 in 2027. But then again, maybe taxpayers won’t learn of his pension fate. Since 2020, OPM has not responded to inquiries about whether any former congressman has had a pension stripped under the reform laws.
So even under HLOGA, Rep. Buyer will continue to collect a taxpayer-funded pension until “final conviction” — giving Buyer a five-figure incentive from taxpayers to appeal his decision and make the court case drag on as long as possible.
Ordinary Americans in jail are not eligible to collect Social Security benefits, so members of Congress in a position of public trust should be held to a higher standard of conduct and face stricter consequences for violating that trust. The No CORRUPTION Act proposed in Congress would close the loophole, so members lose their pension immediately upon conviction — even during the appeals process. If appeals are successful, they would be eligible for the full amount owed.
Lawmakers should also consider expanding the types of crimes that lead to forfeiture and increasing transparency so that taxpayers can find out whether the reform laws are working as intended.
