Pay and Benefits News 
Top News
- IRS to pay $70M in bonuses, Grassley says
- Small companies won't feel effect of lowered contractor pay cap
- Senators push Tangherlini for assurances GSA is improving
- As VA works to eliminate one backlog, one more might emerge
- BRAC-like commission proposed to hunt down government cost savings
- Sequestration claims another conference: DHS's GFirst cyber event
- Postal Service closing Capitol Hill post offices in 'symbolic' move
- Senators seek cost cuts for F-35 fighter jet
- Fed pens new furlough song
- Web guru Dorris brings new life to government websites
- EPA CIO Jackson returning to private sector
- Navy strikes enterprise licensing deal with Oracle
- Contractors with security clearances lack path to report problems
- NSA leak case gives vendors reason to reevaluate personnel
- 8 contract executives guilty of 8(a) contracting fraud
- Whistleblower suit leads to $12M false claims settlement by SAIC
Chained CPI, TSP, and the 2014 budget
Financial Planner Art Stein and Federal Times Senior Staff Writer Stephen Losey join host Mike Causey to talk about a number of issues affecting federal workers.
April 24, 2013
Zen and your diet COLA
Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wants to know: If I chopped a couple of bucks off each of the future cost-of-living adjustments made to your federal retirement or Social Security benefits would you even notice? Or, would you pick up the fact that over time that is a lot of money that you will never see.
TSP board quashes extra loan option for furloughed feds
The Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board says offering federal employees an extra loan option through their Thrift Savings Plans to cushion the impact of furloughs would require too much effort to implement and may not help the employees all that much. Several federal-employee unions have lobbied the board to add a second general purpose loan option to help cushion the blow of furloughs. But at a Employee Thrift Advisory Council meeting April 22, the board quashed the idea, citing the complexity surrounding the changes.
Taking the mystery out of Medicare
David Santana, with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, answers your calls and emails about the Medicare system.
Does GS system need an update? Lawmakers ask GAO to review federal pay scale
A trio of lawmakers from the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee want the Government Accountability Office to examine whether the General Schedule system for federal employees needs an update. Rep. Darrell Issa (R-Calif.), Elijah Cummings (D-Md.) and Blake Farenthold (R-Texas), said the watchdog agency's review would aid the lawmakers in evaluating "the appropriateness of the General Schedule (GS) as a pay scale for today's workforce."
Military groups fight to stop DoD budget proposal
Advocacy organizations are criticizing the Pentagon's proposed fee increase for TRICARE as unfair and discriminatory.
Chained CPI, TSP, and the 2014 budget
Financial Planner Art Stein and Federal Times Senior Staff Writer Stephen Losey join host Mike Causey to talk about a number of issues affecting federal workers.
April 17, 2013
Fed employee group calculates lost benefits under chained CPI
President Barack Obama's proposal to change the way retirees' cost-of-living adjustments (COLAs) are calculated has drawn the ire of federal-employee groups and unions. The National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) has released a calculator designed to show retirees and policymakers how benefits would be reduced if the chained CPI were implemented.
LTC = Long-term peace of mind
Joan Melanson of Long Term Care Partners answers calls and emails about the Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program.
April 15, 2013
Never-gonna-happen furloughs happening
When sequestration was proposed, politicians said it would never happen. It did. When it triggered furlough warnings, some said they would never take place. Except they are happening right now, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Feds in Survivor Island mode
President Barack Obama wants to make federal service cool again. But his budget proposals, which would reduce future retirement benefits and force feds to pay more for them, has a lot of current civil servants hot under the collar, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey.
FEHBP modernization plan receives cautious optimism from Hill
The Office of Personnel Management told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee that the 50-year-old law creating the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program (FEHBP) has hurt its ability to keep the FEHBP up-to-date. The agency estimates billions in savings over the next decade should Congress approve the White House's proposals in the 2014 budget request.
Is your retirement check shrink-proof?
Senior Correspondent Mike Causey wants to know: Would you be willing to accept a slightly smaller retirement benefit if it would help get the country out of debt? What if future cost-of-living adjustments to your civil service benefit were reduced by a mere 0.3 percent each year?
The John Berry legacy at OPM
Carol Bonosaro, president of the Senior Executives Association, and NFFE president William R. Dougan will give their thoughts on John Berry's four years as director of the Office of Personnel Management.
April 10, 2013
President's 2014 budget includes pay increase, but retirement changes loom large
Federal employees would see a slight pay bump next year under President Barack Obama's proposed budget for 2014. But at the same time, the White House budget outline proposes sweeping changes to federal employees' retirement benefits, including reductions to annual cost-of-living increases for retirees.
DoD's 2014 budget: Fewer civilians, higher retiree health fees
The Defense Department's 2014 budget proposal reduces the size of the civilian workforce slightly, increases TRICARE premiums, and requests another round of base closures. It also calls for a slight raise for both civilian employees and uniformed servicemembers. The budget significantly exceeds the Defense spending caps in current law.
TSP examining why so many young workers stay in 'super safe' G Fund
While auto enrollment for new hires has increased participation in the Thrift Savings Plan over the last few years, a recent report suggests many of them are staying in the super-safe G Fund — instead of reallocating money into other funds.
Leaner retirement in the works
In your golden retirement years, will you be dining on steak or Hamburger Helper? Some people say the latter may be on the menu thanks to a White house plan to trim future cost-of-living-adjustments for federal, military and Social Security retirees, Senior Correspondent Mike Causey says.
Retirement twilight zone
Bob Leins hosts a roundtable discussion of some strange but true retirement planning stories.
April 8, 2013
Hagel tells Pentagon to brace for more cost cutting
In his first policy speech, new Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel praised the military, but acknowledged DoD has grown older and more expensive in almost every way. While not a tacit acceptance of the automatic budget cuts imposed by sequestration, Hagel acknowledged it was time for the military to reassess how it can operate in the new budgetary environment where there will be fewer dollars available.
