Federal Daily - May 9, 2008
House Panel OKs Higher Military Pay Raise, Service Levels
A House Armed Services subcommittee endorsed a Fiscal Year (FY) 2009 defense authorization bill that
would provide a 3.9 percent pay raise for the military, increase the size of the Army reserve and impose
a freeze on TRICARE pharmacy fee hikes. The House Armed Services Military Personnel subcommittee approved
the National Defense Authorization Act for FY 2009 (H.R. 5658) by a voice vote on May 7 and sent it
to the full committee. The 3.9 percent pay raise approved in the bill is a half-percent more than the
pay raise recommended by President Bush. It is also a half-percent above the estimated private-sector
raises measured by the Employment Cost Index (ECI), noted panel Chairwoman Susan Davis, D-Calif. The
bill also would increase the full-time size of the Army National Guard to 30,450, and the Army Reserve
to 16,320. And the bill would put in place a one-year moratorium on TRICARE health and pharmacy fee
increases that have been discussed by DoD. Davis said such increases would place an unfair financial
burden on military retirees and fail to address other cost drivers within the system. The bill also
would authorize a tuition assistance program for eligible military spouses to develop portable careers,
as well as a career intermission pilot program that would allow servicemembers to take time off from
active duty, Davis said. To see more, go to: http://armedservices.house.gov/apps/list/speech/
armedsvc_dem/davisos050708.shtml.
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Weaker Economy Hits USPS
The U.S. Postal Service (USPS) announced on May 7 that its fiscal second quarter ended with a net
loss of $707 million. USPS released the disappointing second quarter results—which it attributed
to a decline in mail volume because of the poor economic climate—at a meeting of the Postal Service
Board of Governors. USPS said it had “essentially broken even” for the first six months
of the fiscal year, with a net loss of $35 million on revenue of $39.3 billion. Year-to-date total
mail volume is down by 3.1 percent compared to the same period last year—and if the trend lasts
all year, USPS said, it would be only the seventh year total mail volume has decreased in the last
50 years. Postmaster General John Potter blamed declines in mail volume on weakness in the housing
and credit markets. To see more, go to: www.usps.com.
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Panel Seeks Ways to Improve Fed Recruitment
To enhance federal recruitment, Congress should create a wide range of financial hiring incentives,
such as establishing a government-wide graduate scholarship program and a student loan assistance effort,
Max Stier, president of the Partnership for Public Service (PPS) told lawmakers May 8. Stier testified
before a Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs panel looking at ways to increase federal
recruitment in advance of an expected retirement wave. Stier said lawmakers should embrace the Roosevelt
Scholars proposal, promoted by Rep. David Price (D-N.C.), which would create an ROTC-like scholarship
program that could restore prestige to federal service. Also, Stier said Congress should pass S.1047,
which treats loan repayment as a non-taxable benefit. Stier also recommended that agencies work to
streamline the application process, perhaps starting with the adoption of an “Applicants’ Bill
of Rights” that promises a user-friendly application process, allowing—for example—a
resume to serve as an application. “We have much more road to travel,” Stier said. “We
are still faced with a constant stream of stories that emphasize the need to invest in our federal
workforce.” To see more, go to: http://hsgac.senate.gov.
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