Description:
S. 1888 would increase from $25,000 to $40,000 the amount that federal agencies can offer to employees as part of a separation incentive. That amount would rise annually to account for inflation. The bill also would clarify the treatment of law enforcement availability pay (LEAP) for federal air marshals and criminal investigators of the Transportation Security Administration (TSA). A recent review of the relevant federal statutes by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) found that LEAP has been incorrectly applied to the retirement benefit calculations for certain TSA criminal investigators and federal air marshals, resulting in benefit payments that are higher than authorized under current law. S. 1888 would hold harmless the retirees and current employees who are affected by OPM’s findings and would clarify the treatment of LEAP for future retirees. CBO estimates those changes would, assuming appropriation of the necessary amounts, increase discretionary outlays by $698 million over the 2019-2023 period. In addition, direct spending would increase by $314 million and revenues would increase by $1 million over the 2019-2028 period. Because enacting S. 1888 would affect direct spending and revenues, pay-as-you-go procedures apply. CBO estimates that enacting S. 1888 would not increase net direct spending by more than $2.5 billion or on-budget deficits by more than $5 billion in any of the four consecutive 10-year periods beginning in 2029. S. 1888 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act (UMRA).
