Of this number, 335 had retired under CSRS and were receiving an average annual pension of $74,028. A total of 276 Members had retired with service under FERS and were receiving an average annual pension of $41,076 in 2016. Forfeiture In 2003, after James Traficant was expelled from Congress, several Congressmen tried passing a bill that would prevent expelled members from receiving their pensions. The bill was stalled and eventually dropped after being sent to the House Administration and Reforms committee for review. In 2007, the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act was enacted; this act provides that a member of Congress convicted of one or more of a list of enumerated felonies (those relating to corruption, election crimes, or official misconduct) will forfeit his or her pension. Refusal to participate Former congressman Ron Paul refused to participate in the congressional pension system, labeling it "immoral." North Carolina congressman Howard Coble did not participate in the pension system. He campaigned against the system in his first campaign in 1984. Former Massachusetts congressman Barney Frank chose not to participate in the pension system. He declared that he did not believe he would live long enough after retirement for the benefits to outweigh the contributions and because he was convinced that he would remain single and have no beneficiary. He has since gotten married, as the state of Massachusetts allowed gays to marry, a law that didn’t exist during his time in office, and has been retired from Congress for nearly ten years. In 2019, Florida governor Ron DeSantis opted out of his congressional pension. References Public pension funds in the United States Legislative branch of the United States government