Bill cuts presidents’ pensions

WASHINGTON — Former presidents get lucrative book deals and high-paid speaking gigs. So there’s no need for taxpayers to support them to the degree that the federal government has done in the past.

That’s the reasoning behind legislation that the House backed on Monday slightly reducing the government pension of former presidents and capping how much they can bill taxpayers for office expenses and staff. The measure passed by voice vote.

The measure sets the pension for former presidents at $200,000 annually. It currently is $205,700. The bill also sets the office allowance at $500,000, but that amount shrinks in ensuing years, eventually to $250,000, and possibly even more depending upon how much income a former president earns.