Feds | Voter.org

GOP resurrects effort to make some feds at-will employees, thus easier to fire

May 13, 2023 Fire, employees, effort, Feds, Resurrects, ‘atwill’, thus, Easier, Some0 comment

Republicans have renewed their push to try to make it easier for agencies to fire federal employees. GOP lawmakers in both the House and Senate reintroduced a bill to make feds at-will workers. Proponents of the Public Service Reform Act said it would make it easier to remove poor performers, and create more accountability and efficiency. It is an idea that former President Trump originally touted through a now-revoked executive order that created the Schedule F position classification. Republicans’ new bill would also abolish the Merit Systems Protection Board. Democrat…

More feds might soon be eligible for student-loan forgiveness

May 5, 2023 more, might, soon, Feds, eligible, Forgiveness, StudentLoan0 comment

More federal employees could see their student loans forgiven under a newly introduced bill. The bipartisan legislation would reduce eligibility requirements for the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program (PSLF). Currently, borrowers must be employed in public service at the time of loan forgiveness. That means retired feds and those who have left public service, but who still made all the qualifying payments, are not currently eligible for the program. The PSLF Payment Completion Fairness Act would remove this requirement. The bill was introduced in both the House and Senate. (Public…

Who should staff the arsenal of democracy, feds or contractors?

April 7, 2023 Should, Democracy, staff, Contractors, Feds, arsenal0 comment

The war between Russia and Ukraine has provoked a debate here in the U.S. Who should rebuild the Defense Department supplies shipments to Ukraine have drawn down? Specifically, should it be expanded contracting with industry or a buildup of what’s known as the government’s organic industrial base? Or should the government enlist industry to make up the shortfall? The question in some ways forms a proxy for wider questions of who should do what. On the specific weapons question, though, DoD in reality is working on a variety of ways…

Revived bills would alter feds’ payment obligations during shutdowns, federal first responders’ pensions

March 6, 2023 Alter, first, payment, would, responders’, federal, during, Revived, bills, Shutdown's, Feds, pensions, obligations0 comment

Lawmakers revived a host of bills this week that would impact the federal workforce, through changes to payments, retirement benefits and more. The Federal Employee Civil Relief Act, for one, would let federal employees and contractors postpone certain types of payments during government shutdowns, or if the government defaults on its debt. Specifically, feds would get a 30-day cushion, after a government shutdown ends, before they would have to make payments on loans and other types of financial obligations. Sens. Tim Kaine (D-Va.) and Mark Warner (D-Va.), who reintroduced the…

Democrats reintroduce bill to give feds 8.7% average pay raise next year

January 29, 2023 Democrats, year, raise, Next, Bill, Reintroduce, give, Feds, 'average', 8.7%0 comment

A bicameral pair of Democrats proposed a bill to give federal employees a pay raise in 2024, in what has become an annual tradition in recent years. Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) and Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) reintroduced the Federal Adjustment of Income Rates (FAIR) Act in the House and Senate, respectively, to give most civilian employees an 8.7% average pay raise next year. Specifically, the bill includes a 4.7% across-the-board base pay raise, plus a 4% average locality pay increase. The legislation also includes a 4.7% raise for prevailing rate…

Reintroduced bills aim to fix hiring process, Social Security benefits for feds

January 25, 2023 security, Social, benefits, bills, Feds, Process, hiring, Reintroduced0 comment

Lawmakers have teed up two familiar bills that differ in their priorities, but that both have implications for federal employees, as well as retirees from the public sector. The first bill, the Chance to Compete Act, aims to revamp longstanding challenges in the federal hiring process. The House passed the bill Tuesday evening in a vote of 422 to 2. The bipartisan legislation would expand the use of shared assessments among different agencies, in effect trying to expand cross-agency hiring. Also under the legislation, subject matter experts (SMEs) would be…