At our 2009 town hall meetings, U.S. Rep. Bob Inglis heard citizens calls to:

Oppose the "public option".

Stop the use of "czars".

Defund ACORN.

Make Congress accountable.

For Immediate Release:

Thursday, September 17, 2009

Inglis: ACORN has drawn its last government check
Illegal activities and pressure from public and GOP turned the tide.

 U.S. Rep. Bob Inglis (SC-4)  said Thursday that the spotlight by the public and House Republicans on the illegal activities around ACORN finally forced the majority to agree to yank the federal funding of the community organizing group.

“We can hope that ACORN has now drawn it’s last federal check,” Inglis said. The Senate voted earlier to defund the agency as well.

The House voted 345-75 to cut off all federal funding from ACORN after Minority Leader John Boehner’s “ Defund ACORN Act ” was made a part of a student aid bill.

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For Immediate Release:
Monday, September 28, 2009

Inglis: Congress should know
reading is fundamental
72-hour “reading period” bill gathers 178 bipartisan signatures for discharge petition

U.S. Rep. Bob Inglis (SC-4) said Monday few practices have angered constituents at town halls more than the recent practice of ramming huge legislation through Congress that nobody has time to read.

“They are right. The only way to build confidence in the process is through informed debate, and that is not what we are getting,” Inglis said.

Inglis is among 178 other Members of Congress on a bipartisan bill by U.S. Reps. Brian Baird (R-WA) and Greg Walden (R-OR) that would require all non-emergency legislation to be posted online, in final form, for at least 72 hours prior to a floor vote.

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Immediate Release:
 Thursday, September 24, 2009

Inglis: Czar appointments need accountability

Town halls demanded Administration be reined in to the Constitution
U.S. Rep. Bob Inglis (SC-4) said Thursday that President Obama’s appointment of governmental czars had gotten out of control and signed onto a bill that would prohibit any federal funds to be used for czar salaries or related expenses if they were not appropriately confirmed by the Senate.

“At town meetings this August, I heard real concern about President Obama’s use of czars,” Inglis said. “We looked into the matter and found out that there is every reason to be concerned. This is a real problem.”

Even Sen. Robert Byrd (D-WV), the most senior member of the Senate, wrote the Administration in February, saying the White House actions to accumulate staff can “threaten the Constitutional system of checks and balances” by taking direct control of programs that should only be run by officials confirmed by the Senate.

“It’s one thing to appoint a specific adviser to the President,  but we’re talking more than 30 special staff or ‘czars’ that President Obama has now appointed since taking office in January,” Inglis said.

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Accountability starts with transparency.

Here’s what U.S. Rep. Bob Inglis gets by way of benefits and salary.

HEALTH CARE

Inglis is committed to making members of Congress subject to whatever health reform plan is passed. That’s why he’s signed on to H. Res. 615.

In the meantime, here’s what Inglis gets:

• Members of Congress get to choose from the same plans at the same rates offered to the 2 million federal employees who are eligible participants in the Federal Employee Health Benefit plan.

The typical Member of Congress chooses Blue Cross and Blue Shield standard plan because it is offered nationwide. The premium for this plan is going up 15% in 2010 to $1,215 per month for family coverage. Of that amount, the member pays $497 a month (40 % of the premium) and the government pays the remaining $718 a month (60 % of the premium).

• Bob Inglis has chosen a $3,000 high deductible health plan with GEHA along with a health savings account. The $869.79 per month premium is split between the Inglis family’s contribution of $217.45 a month (25% of the premium) and the government’s contribution of $652.34 (75% of the premium).

The government makes a contribution of about $7,820 per year to the Inglis insurance coverage. Some prevention tests and screening are paid from the plan, but as a health savings account, Inglis is responsible for all medical expenses up to $3,000 every year.

• Health insurance benefits end for members of Congress one month after they leave office. Contrary to internet legends, members of Congress do not get health care for life. The only exception is if the member of Congress is of retirement age at 62 when he or she leaves office with more than five years of service, entitling him or her to retire and continue to pay into the FEHB plan.

Otherwise the health coverage stops when a Member leaves office.

 

RETIREMENT BENEFITS

Members of Congress have same three components for retirement as all federal employees: Social Security.
Members of Congress pay into Social Security and Medicare and receive Social Security upon retiring at age 65.

Thrift Savings Plan
Members of Congress have a 401(k) similar to many in the private sector. The government matches up to 5% of annual pay invested in 401(k) plans.

Federal Employee Retirement System (FERS)
Federal employees pay 1.3 % of their pay into the Federal Employee Retirement System (FERS). For those enrolled after 1984, federal employees receive 1.7 percent of their salary for every year of service up to 20 years. After 20 years it is 1 percent. To receive the benefit, federal employees must serve at least five years. Members of Congress can retire at age 50 with 20 years of service and at any age with 25 years of service. For Bob Inglis, who has served 11 years in Congress, his annual pension from the FERS system if he retires at 65 would be $28,500.

 

SALARY

Members of the House and Senate make $174,000 per year. Congressional pay is ordinarily adjusted by an automatic cost-of-living formula, but the scheduled pay raise for 2010 was cancelled in the FY2009 Omnibus Appropriations Act. The most recent automatic cost of living adjustment was a raise of 2.8%. In contrast, the most recent Social Security cost-of-living-adjustment (COLA) was a 5.8% raise for 2009. The cost of living formula for congressional pay is more conservative and typically smaller than that for Social Security