Senators Gillibrand And Ernst Introduce Bipartisan Bill To Eliminate Federal Pensions For Sex Offenders

Senators Gillibrand And Ernst Introduce Bipartisan Bill To Eliminate Federal Pensions For Sex Offenders

May 5, 2026

U.S. Senators Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) and Joni Ernst (R-IA) reintroduced the No Taxpayer-Funded Pensions for Sex Criminals Act, bipartisan legislation to prohibit convicted sex criminals from collecting federal pensions.

Under current law, federal employees convicted of sex crimes, including against children, remain eligible to collect their pensions, even from a jail cell. The senators introduced this legislation to ensure that hard-earned taxpayer dollars are not spent supporting convicted sex criminals who betrayed the trust of the people they served.

"It's outrageous that federal employees convicted of sex crimes are eligible to collect their taxpayer-funded pension," said Senator Gillibrand. "The bipartisan No Taxpayer-Funded Pensions for Sex Criminals Act ensures that no hard-earned taxpayer dollars are spent supporting criminal sex offenders. I'm proud to support this commonsense bill that will provide much-needed accountability."

Senators Gillibrand and Ernst previously worked together on the Military Justice Improvement and Increasing Prevention Act to create a more professional and transparent military justice system for serious crimes, including rape and sexual assault.

Additionally, Senator Gillibrand successfully passed her bipartisan Ending Forced Arbitration of Sexual Assault and Sexual Harassment Act in 2022. This crucial legislation prevents perpetrators from being able to push survivors of sexual harassment and sexual assault into the secretive, biased process of forced arbitration. Senator Gillibrand also leads the bipartisan Tax Fairness for Survivors Act, which would remove the federal tax penalty on settlements, awards, and judgments paid to survivors of sexual harassment and sexual assault.

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