President Trump on Thursday announced that he would cancel a scheduled 2.1 percent across-the-board pay increase for federal workers, as well as locality pay increases.
“In light of our Nation’s fiscal situation, Federal employee pay must be performance-based, and aligned strategically toward recruiting, retaining, and rewarding high-performing Federal employees and those with critical skill sets,” Trump wrote in a letter to the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate.
The proposal sets up a fight with Congress, which could effectively overturn the act in upcoming spending legislation. Without such intervention, the move would affect most of the 2.1 million federal employees around the nation, about 1.7 million of which live in areas outside of the Washington, D.C. metro area.
Members of the military, on the other hand, are on schedule to receive a 2.6 percent pay increase.
Last year, the Trump administration approved a 1.4 percent increase in federal pay and a 2.4 percent increase in military pay.
In the letter, Trump said he had the authority to propose an alternative pay schedule based on Title 5 of the U.S. Code, which allows the president to alter scheduled pay changed he deems it inappropriate in light of “national emergency or serious economic conditions affecting the general welfare.”
Trump’s 2019 budget proposal sought to freeze federal pay, but the Senate Appropriations Committee included a 1.9 percent pay bump in its spending plans for 2019. The House version of the bill did not include such an increase, and sought reductions to spending on federal pension plans.
The two chambers are scheduled to meet in the coming weeks to work out differences in their bills, which could effectively override Trump’s move to cut pay. Trump has not indicated if he would veto such a measure if it included a pay increase.
Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) wrote in a Tweet that Trump’s actions “screwed” federal employees.
“To the hard-working federal employees Trump just screwed by cutting pay — the folks who run our parks, protect our communities, & serve our veterans: YOU MATTER. If billionaires can get tax cuts, you should get a COLA. You work hard for America & that should add up to something,” he wrote.
To the hard-working federal employees Trump just screwed by cutting pay — the folks who run our parks, protect our communities, & serve our veterans: YOU MATTER. If billionaires can get tax cuts, you should get a COLA. You work hard for America & that should add up to something.
— Rep. Eric Swalwell (@RepSwalwell) August 30, 2018
The federal deficit has exploded under Trump, with the advent of the GOP tax law that is projected to cost $1.9 trillion over the course of a decade, as well as a bipartisan spending deal that increased discretionary spending by nearly $300 billion in 2018 and 2019.
http://thehill.com/policy/finance/404398-trump-nixes-federal-pay-raise
Next step nix those useless bureaucrats.
YOU MATTER. If billionaires can get tax cuts, you should get a COLA.
Is that a liter of cola, Farva?
What would Madam Hillary have done if she had won?….or – What would Jesus do?
The federal workers now have another reason to have him impeached….They hate him.
Well…well..well.
The raises should be on “Performance Base”..
We I got some …performance based incentive.
How about this tweet from the Trumpster.
You all get a pay penalty.
No raises until I’m re-elected in 2020.
Oh… and dont waste my time whining.
I have more critical issues to deal with.
Like firing Jeff Sessions.
Sad..
Israel wants more money
BINGO!