A Florida congressman launched a bill this week to pull the plug on congressional pensions.
U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, R-Fla., starting his third term in Congress, unveiled the End Pensions in Congress (EPIC) Act on Wednesday. DeSantis' bill would ensure future members of Congress do not receive pensions and would prevent current members, including the Florida congressman himself, who are currently not vested in the system, from receiving pensions.
DeSantis, a former law school professor who penned “Dreams From our Founding Fathers," insisted pensions are part of a culture that enables career politicians and not how public funds should be spent.
“Taxpayer-funded pensions for members of Congress are a relic of a bygone era and constitute a waste of taxpayer funds,” DeSantis said on Wednesday. “Taxpayer-funded pensions promote careerism in Congress and shield retired members of Congress from living and working under the laws that they pass."
Making his case for ending pensions, DeSantis echoed President-elect Donald Trump.
“Ending pensions for members of Congress will help reform the culture of Washington and will help to drain the swamp,” DeSantis insisted.
Now starting his third term in the U.S. House, DeSantis is pushing political reform in the first week of the 115th Congress.
Following through on an announcement they made in last month, on Tuesday, DeSantis teamed up with U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, to introduce a proposed amendment to the U.S. Constitution imposing congressional term limits. The proposed amendment limits members of the U.S. House to three two-year terms and members of the U.S. Senate to two six-year terms.
DeSantis has been mentioned as a possible candidate for higher office with some speculation that he could run for state attorney general in 2018. Last year, DeSantis launched a bid for the Republican nomination in the U.S. Senate race. DeSantis scuttled that bid after U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., decided at the last moment to seek a second term. Instead, DeSantis ran again for Congress, winning a third term in November.
READ MORE FROM SUNSHINE STATE NEWS
Judge Rejects Track's Bid to Change Gambling Ruling
Bondi's White House Call Close; Who Will be Florida's Next AG?
