Federal White-Collar Pay: FY2009 and FY2010 Salary Adjustments (CRS Report for Congress)
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| Release Date |
Revised Feb. 4, 2010 |
| Report Number |
RL34463 |
| Report Type |
Report |
| Authors |
Barbara L. Schwemle, Analyst in American National Government |
| Source Agency |
Congressional Research Service |
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Summary:
Federal white-collar employees are intended by law to receive an annual pay adjustment and a locality-based comparability payment, effective in January of each year, under Section 529 of P.L. 101-509, the Federal Employees Pay Comparability Act (FEPCA) of 1990. The law has never been implemented as originally enacted; annual and locality payments pursuant to the statute have been reduced each year. Federal white-collar employees received a 1.5% annual pay adjustment and a 0.5% locality-based comparability payment in January 2010. President Barack H. Obama authorized the average 2.0% pay adjustment in Executive Order 13525, issued on December 23, 2009. Although the annual adjustment and the locality payment are sometimes referred to as cost-of-living adjustments, neither is based on changes in the cost of living.
The annual pay adjustment is based on the Employment Cost Index (ECI), which measures changes in private-sector wages and salaries. The size of the locality payment is determined by the President and is based on a comparison of non-federal and General Schedule (GS) salaries in 32 pay areas nationwide. (The GS is the pay schedule that covers white-collar employees under the Civil Service.) By law, the disparity between non-federal and federal salaries was to be gradually reduced to 5% during the years 1994 to 2002. Continuing in each year thereafter, FEPCA requires that amounts payable may not be less than the full amounts necessary to reduce the pay disparity to 5%.
The President's FY2010 budget proposed a 2.0% federal civilian pay adjustment. Division C, Section 744(a) of P.L. 111-117, the Consolidated Appropriations Act for FY2010 (H.R. 3288), enacted on December 16, 2009, provides the 2.0% pay adjustment for federal civilian employees, including employees in the Departments of Defense and Homeland Security.
This report will be updated as events dictate.
