FedSmith has received questions from geographic readers in areas to be covered by new locality pay rates. Most readers asking questions are wondering if they will receive the full locality pay differential cited by the Federal Salary Council. Our advice: Don’t make any purchases based on your expectations of increased income until you know the actual amount you will receive. This article explains why.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the DC Circuit recently confirmed the statutory provisions that limit the payment of overtime and other forms of premium pay as well as the provisions that require Federal employees to repay any overpayments. The author explains what this means for some federal employees’ paychecks.
A proposed rule would create 13 new locality pay areas for some federal employees. That is good news for those employees, but there could also be a negative impact of this action on 2016 pay for federal employees currently under the locality pay system.
The author says that there are artificial limits in place under the Federal Wage System that are limiting the pay potential of some federal employees. He looks at the history of the situation and provides an example of how this is happening.
Will new locality pay areas be established in 2015? Here is a quick summary of the situation from the perspective of the Federal Salary Council.
A new petition is circulating which asks the president’s Pay Agent to implement the 12 new pay localities recently recommended by the Federal Salary Council.
No action has been taken on a recommendation to approve new locality pay areas in 2015.
The author says that federal employees who move to more expensive locality areas prior to retirement can actually boost their annuity after retirement. He explains how this works through the use of some hypothetical examples.
Will new locality pay areas be added to the federal GS pay system in 2015? A report from the President’s Pay Agent suggests this will be done but no final decision has been made.
Federal employees in areas as far apart as Albany, NY to Las Vegas and Tucson are wondering, “What about my locality pay?”
