received only a daily payment of $6 while in session. Members received an annual salary of $1,500 per year from 1815 to 1817, then a per diem salary of $8 from 1818 to 1855; since then they have received an annual salary, first pegged in 1855 at $3,000. In 1907, salaries were raised to $7,500 per year, the equivalent of $173,000 in 2010. In 2006, members of Congress received a yearly salary of $165,200. Congressional leaders were paid $183,500 per year. The Speaker of the House of Representatives earns $212,100 annually. The salary of the President pro tempore for 2006 was $183,500, equal to that of the majority and minority leaders of the House and Senate. Privileges include an office and paid staff. In 2008, non-officer members of Congress earned $169,300 annually. Some critics complain Congressional pay is high compared with a median American income of $45,113 for men and $35,102 for women. Others have countered that Congressional pay is consistent with other branches of government. Another criticism is that members of Congress have access to free or low-cost medical care in the Washington, D.C., area. The petition to "remove health-care subsidies for Members of Congress and their families" garnered over 1,077,000 signatures on the website Change.org. In January 2014, it was reported that for the first time over half of the members of Congress were millionaires. Congress has been criticized for trying to conceal pay raises by slipping them into a large bill at the last minute. Others have criticized the wealth of members of Congress. Representative Jim Cooper of Tennessee told Harvard professor Lawrence Lessig that a chief problem with Congress was that members focused on lucrative careers as lobbyists after servingthat Congress was a "Farm League for KStreet"instead of on public service. Members elected since 1984 are covered by the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). Like other federal employees, Congressional retirement is funded through taxes and participants' contributions. Members of Congress under FERS contribute 1.3% of their salary into the FERS retirement plan and pay 6.2% of their salary in Social Security taxes. And like federal employees, members contribute one-third of the cost of health insurance with the government covering the other two-thirds. The size of a Congressional pension depends on the years of service and the average of the highest three years of their salary. By law, the starting amount of a member's retirement annuity may