Legislation has been introduced in the House that would roll the mandatory contribution amount for new federal employees to their pension programs back to pre-2012 levels.
The Federal Employee Pension Act of 2017 (H.R. 3269) was introduced by Congressman Anthony Brown (D-MD). It would repeal sections of the Middle-Class Tax Relief and Job Creation Act of 2012 and the Bipartisan Budget Act of 2013 that raised mandatory pension contributions of new federal employees to 4.4 percent and return it to pre-2012 levels of 0.8%.
Brown says that pay for federal employees should not be used to balance the government’s budget.
He said in a statement:
Federal employees are essential to making the government work for Americans across our diverse nation. Congress cannot continue to squeeze these middle-class, hardworking public servants to try and balance the budget:
These workers are not the drivers of our debt, and targeting them for benefit and pay cuts is wrong. If we continue to treat them unfairly, it will become more and more difficult to recruit and retain a 21st century workforce. The American people deserve and need the best and brightest working for them.
The White House’s 2018 budget proposal included suggested cuts to federal employees’ pay and benefits such as eliminating cost of living adjustments for current and future federal retirees and increasing the amount federal employees under FERS contribute to their annuity programs.
The Federal Employee Pension Act has been endorsed by the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), the National Federation of Federal Employees (NFFE), and the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE).
