FederalDaily - August 1, 2005
Substantial Troop Withdrawal Expected Next Year
A "fairly substantial" withdrawal of U.S. forces from Iraq could
take place next spring or summer if the insurgency does not grow and the country's
political process continues as scheduled, Army Gen. George Casey, head of Multinational
Force Iraq , said in Baghdad on July 27. Casey said the insurgency in Iraq
has not substantially increased within the past year. Iraqi Prime Minister
Ibrahim Jaafari also issued a statement saying the departure of U.S. forces
from his country depends on how soon Iraq can train, equip and field its own
soldiers and police to take over security duties.
:: Back to Top ::
Symposium Focuses on Federal Pay Reform
Federal pay reform was the topic at a March symposium convened by the Government
Accountability Office (GAO), the Office of Personnel Management, the Merit
Systems Protection Board, the National Academy of Public Administration and
the Partnership for Public Service. Last week, GAO issued a report on the symposium,
where the participating organizations talked about their experiences with market-based
and more performance-oriented pay systems. These organizations found that the
key challenge with implementing market-based and more performance-oriented
pay is changing the culture. Transitioning to these pay systems is a huge undertaking
and will require constant monitoring and refining, GAO said. To read the full
GAO report, go to: www.gao.gov/new.items/d05832sp.pdf.
:: Back to Top ::
Geographic Rate Protection Eliminated for Military
Many servicemembers residing off base will see their next paycheck shrink
by as much as $250—and many are not aware of the change , according to
a statement issued by the Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton in California .
Why the cut? The "geographic rate protection" under the Basic Allowance
for Housing (BAH) has been eliminated. The change is slated to take effect
on Aug. 1. According to the Marine Corps, the old policy allowed servicemembers
to retain higher housing allowances even when they moved to cheaper neighborhoods.
Geographic rate protection is expiring because BAH rates have climbed so that
servicemembers no longer have to pay out-of-pocket expenses for housing, Air
Force Col. Virginia Penrod, the Department of Defense’s director of military
compensation, said in an American Forces Press Service article.
:: Back to Top ::
GAO Reports on Security Contractors in Iraq
Civilian government agencies—those other than the Department of Defense—and
contractors working in Iraq have hired private security providers because providing
security to them is not the U.S. military’s responsibility. The Government
Accountability Office (GAO) found two problems between the U.S. military and
private security contractors working for other agencies. First, private security
providers continue to report incidents between themselves and the military
when approaching military convoys and checkpoints. Second, military units deploying
to Iraq are not fully aware of the parties operating on the battle space in
Iraq and what responsibility they have to those parties. As of December 2004,
the agencies and contractors GAO reviewed had obligated more than $766 million
for private security providers. GAO found that the cost to obtain private security
providers and security-related equipment accounted for more than 15 percent
of contract costs on eight of the 15 reconstruction contracts it reviewsed.
:: Back to Top ::
|
