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FederalDaily - April 18, 2005

Another Swing at Postal Reform

Last week Congress again addressed the issue of overhauling the U.S. Postal Service (USPS). The House Government Reform Committee passed one version of a reform bill on April 13 and the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee held hearings on its version on April 14. One of the major reasons that reform is at the top of the agenda this year is the administration’s stance that USPS should pay retirement benefits for postal employees’ military service, if they served in the armed forces. Currently, USPS is the only federal agency required to cover retirement benefits costs for former military employees. Both House and Senate versions of the bill would transfer the responsibility for funding the military cost of USPS employee retiree pensions to the Treasury Department. While the House version now awaits debate on floor, the Senate version is not likely to pass out of committee for at least another month, although supporters in both chambers are confident the bills will pass this year.

Senate Improves Pay for Reservists

Sens. Barbara Mikulski, D-Md., Richard J. Durbin, D-Ill., and George Allen, R-Va., introduced an amendment to the 2005 Iraq Supplemental to protect federal employees who are in the National Guard and Reserves from a pay cut when they are called to active duty. The Reservists Pay Security Act requires federal agencies to pay their employees the difference between their civilian and military wages while on active military duty. The amendment passed the Senate unanimously. A Department of Defense survey found that 51 percent of National Guard members and Reservists suffer a loss of income when mobilized for long periods of active duty because their military pay is less than the pay from their civilian job. The average reservist loses $368 per month, Mikulski said. Of the nearly 1.2 million members of the National Guard and Reserves, some 120,000 (approximately 10 percent) are also federal employees.

Bill for Veterans’ Mental Health Needs

Rep. Lane Evans, D-Ill., ranking member of the House Committee on Veterans Affairs, introduced legislation to address the mental health needs of returning war veterans. According to the National Mental Health Association, indicators of the need to address veterans' mental health needs include:

instances of suicide among returning service-members;

lack of programs to educate families on the symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder;

veterans falling through the cracks transitioning between the Departments of Defense (DoD) and Veterans Affairs (VA);

stigma in the armed forces surrounding mental health treatment; and

inadequate staffing to meet veterans' needs.

Among other things, Evans’ bill requires the VA to develop and disseminate, with the assistance of DoD, educational materials for veterans, their families and the general public, concerning post-deployment mental health issues and treatment options.

Tax Scheme Targeting Soldiers Shut Down

The Justice Department announced that it is has asked a federal court to bar Lou Ann Moser and Carla Newman of Hawaii from promoting an allegedly fraudulent tax scheme targeted at military personnel. In the complaint, filed in Honolulu, the government also seeks an order directing the defendants to provide the government their customers’ names, mail and e-mail addresses, and Social Security and telephone numbers. The government alleges that Moser and Newman operate their tax preparation service in Kailua, Hawaii. Moser falsely advises military customers that they can claim tax deductions for non-deductible personal expenses such as haircuts, cell-phone and Internet services, and other personal items and services. The complaint further alleges that Moser advised customers to lie to IRS agents to obstruct investigations.