WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, U.S. Senator Thom Tillis (R-NC) introduced the No Cash for Crooks Act, legislation that would invalidate Congressional retirement benefits and pensions for any member of Congress who has pled guilty to a felony they committed while in office, or been convicted of a felony they committed while in office.

Senator Tillis introduced this legislation in response to the report that former Rep. Duncan Hunter is likely to receive over $1.2 million from his federal pension despite a guilty plea to a felony conspiracy to converting campaign funds to personal use. Last year, Hunter delayed his resignation from Congress after his guilty plea to add additional funds to his taxpayer-funded pension.

“Members of Congress who violate the public trust and commit felonies do not deserve to further cheat their constituents by receiving taxpayer-funded pensions,” said Senator Tillis. “The fact that a disgraced Congressman was recently able to move back his resignation date so he could qualify for another year of eligibility for his pension shows how broken the system is. The No Cash For Crooks Act will close a loophole in existing law so corrupt members of Congress can’t continue to abuse the rules and make American taxpayers foot the bill.”

Currently, Congressional ethics rules do not include conspiracy misuse of campaign cash among the list of felonies/violations that would bar a member/former member of Congress from collecting their taxpayer-funded pension. The No Cash for Crooks Act would change those rules and would function prospectively, meaning it would only apply to felonies committed after its enactment.

###