Federal Daily - February 18, 2009

Lawmakers Call for Suspension of NSPS Conversions

Days after the Office of Personnel Management reported that DoD’s National Security Personnel System (NSPS) seems to be making headway toward promoting a high-performance workforce, two key Democratic lawmakers have called on Defense Secretary Roberts Gates to halt NSPS conversions until Congress can conduct a review of the system. Rep. Ike Skelton, D-Mo., chairman of the House Armed Services Committee, and Rep. Solomon Ortiz, D-Texas, chairman of the Readiness Subcommittee, asked for the halt in light of statements made by President Obama during his campaign that he would consider either a repeal or complete overhaul of the pay-for-performance system. In a letter to Gates, Skelton and Ortiz expressed concerns over recent reports from the Government Accountability Office and the Congressional Budget Office that have raised questions over the cost of NSPS, its lack of transparency, and potential negative effects on DoD employees. The two also questioned last-minute regulations issued by the Bush administration, which they said go beyond the intent of Congress when it revised NSPS in the 2008 Defense Authorization Act. To see more, go to: http://armedservices.house.gov/apps/list/press/
armedsvc_dem/skeltonortizpr021309.shtml.

:: Back to Top ::

Bill Would Give Servicemembers More ‘Dwell Time’

A California legislator last week introduced a bill that would establish guaranteed rest and training periods for military servicemembers between deployments. The bill—if passed into law—would require that active duty servicemembers and units get a month of rest, or “dwell time,” for each month they are deployed. Members of the National Guard and reservists would get three months rest for each month they are deployed. “Our military is heading toward a breaking point if we don’t change direction,” said the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Ellen Tauscher, D-Calif. “Our troops need more time to rest, reset and regroup between deployments.” Brian McGough, an Iraq and Afghanistan veteran, and vice chairman of VoteVets.org, said the House bill “is simply what was always an unwritten rule that we in the military always depended on.” McGough called it “a matter of fairness.” The House last year approved the bill, but a similar amendment offered by Sen. Jim Web, D-Va., fell short in the Senate by four votes. To see more, go to. www.tauscher.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=
view&id=1136&Itemid=67.

:: Back to Top ::

Unions Applaud Inclusion of Retiree Benefit in Stimulus Package

Unions last week applauded the survival of a measure in the economic stimulus package that will ensure a benefit for federal retirees under both the Civil Service Retirement System (CSRS) and the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS). CSRS retirees will receive a refundable tax credit of $250 for this year; FERS retirees will be eligible for a one-time payment of $250. The National Treasury Employees Union and the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) expressed thanks to legislators including Sen. John Kerry, D-Mass., Sen. Max Baucus D-Mont., and Rep. Charlie Rangel (D-N.Y.), for their work in keeping the benefit in the final bill. “As federal retirees worked and contributed just like other Social Security retirees, NARFE is pleased that this tax credit was created and then successfully attached to the stimulus legislation,” said NARFE President Margaret Baptiste. “NARFE applauds Congress for extending a tax stimulus to our nation’s seniors so that retirees can join other taxpayers in bolstering our economy at a critical time.” To see more, go to: www.narfe.org/departments/home/articles.cfm?ID=1716, or www.nteu.org/PressKits/PressRelease/PressRelease.aspx?ID=1375.

:: Back to Top ::