GovExec Daily: What Still Needs to Happen for Feds to Get Their 2023 Pay Raise

Ross Gianfortune:
This is GovExec Daily, where we bring you the federal stories that really matter.  It's December 5, 2022. I’m Ross Gianfortune.

The December calendar for Congress is full of government operations issues. The continuing resolution runs out on December16 and the National Defense Authorization Act remains unpassed as we record this episode. But the issue likely in the front of the minds of federal employees is the still unresolved issue of the 2023 pay raise for feds

President  Joe Biden initially proposed an average 4.6% pay increase for civilian federal workers in 2023 as part of his 2023 budget request in the spring. The White House formalized that figure with the August release of the alternative pay plan. Since then, federal employee groups and some lawmakers have urged the administration to adopt a more generous raise of 5.1%

Congress can pass a different pay raise number, but it is increasingly unlikely that Congress will ultimately override Biden’s proposal and offer a more generous pay increase, given Congress’ previous inaction on the topic. There are a few steps that the White house still has to take to implement the 4.6% increase and history suggests that the White House will, in fact, take those steps.

GovExec senior reporter Erich Wagner covers the federal workforce. After a short break, he’ll join me to discuss What Still Needs to Happen for Feds to Get Their 2023 Pay Raise

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Ross Gianfortune
As a government shutdown looms in a few weeks, there is increased pressure on lawmakers to make deals on appropriations bills. As the end of the year approaches, it also means that the clock is ticking on Congress and the White House to act on a pay raise for feds in 2023.

GovExec senior reporter Erich Wagner covers the federal workforce. He joins me now to talk about the next steps needed for feds to get their pay raise before the year ends.

Welcome back to the program. 

Erich Wagner
Good to be here. 
So what was Biden's proposal? I know you've been on the show to talk about before, but can you kind of refresh our memory?

Erich Wagner
Sure. So Biden's proposal which he first released as part of his budget submission for fiscal 2023 was an average raise of 4.6%. For federal employees, that what's up to an across the board, pay increase in basic pay of 4.1%. And then an average increase to locality pay of 0.5%.

Ross Gianfortune  
What still needs to happen for feds to get that number.

Erich Wagner  
So, you know, this is it's a weird process. You know, the President announces his pay plan, you know, in the spring, like I mentioned, as part of the budget process. And then in August, the President has to sort of reiterate that plan as a so called alternative pay plan that put in a document to sort of prevent some big automatic increases to locality pay from automatically taking effect because of the federal employee pay comparability Act, which is a law from the early 90s, late 80s. And then after that, you know, provided Congress doesn't act to override the president. And that has not happened thus far. In this case, the President has to issue an executive order before the end of the year, finalizing the 4.6% number and after that, the Office of Personnel Management will release the pay tables for the year and that basically is a big honkin document that lists every pay level whatever Every step of the GPS scale in every locality pair, yeah. So those are the things that still have to happen.

Ross Gianfortune  
Are those things gonna happen? 

Erich Wagner
Oh, yeah, probably, you know, I can't say with 100% certainty, but I, I have never seen a year where they didn't do it. So it'll it'll happen.

Ross Gianfortune  

What happens if it doesn't? If they don't do I know this is sort of a dumb hypothetical, but I am curious.

Erich Wagner 
I am not 100% Sure, honestly, because I don't think it's ever happened. But I think I think federal employee pay would just sort of remain where it is, you know, there was a couple years back, you know, President Trump had proposed a pay freeze, I believe, and that it coincided with with when he also decided to reject all the funding negotiations, and there was, you might remember 35 days of partial government shutdown. And so, you know, Feds weren't getting paid when the New Year flipped over anyway. But when they did the, the, the builder and the shutdown included retroactive pay, as well as like lining up the pay increase. 

Ross Gianfortune  
I mean, no offense over years, but I'm kind of hoping that the chaos reigns and none of that stuff happens or not all that stuff happens. And there's, there's we're in uncharted territory. 

Erich Wagner
I don't. I'd like some time off at the end of the year.

Ross Gianfortune  
Yeah. I mean, it's, it's a nightmare for me to the employee groups, unions, things like that. What have they said about this number? I know they always want it to be higher, but what have they done? Their their criticism of Biden, to a certain extent has been blunted, I think, as compared to Trump. So what is the reaction been to the pay raise from unions and employee groups?

Erich Wagner
Well, you know, they, they are still, I think, hoping for a higher raise, they had been pushing for a average raise of 5.1%, which would have been the same increase to basic pay, and then a 1.0% average increase in locality pay. And, you know, their argument is, hey, inflation was crazy this year. Our health insurance premiums through the Federal Employee Health Benefits Program, are also going up significantly. You know, this is 4.6% just isn't enough. But thus far, they haven't been able to secure enough support in Congress to actually get that into the funding bills, although we don't exactly know what might be in those omnibus bills, when they start to get circulated later this month.

Ross Gianfortune  
Well, let's that's a good segue to the idea that Congress can in fact, give a higher number. What's the process there? And has that happened recently?

Erich Wagner
Oh, yeah, it happened. Like I mentioned at the end of the shutdown, in 2018 2019. The Congress did override the president at that time, but I don't, I don't necessarily see it happening this year. You know, I don't have any major sources saying it's not going to happen or anything but but the mere fact that the House, which is under is, for a couple of weeks, longer, a little more firmly in democratic control. They didn't go for it when they passed their appropriations bills back in the summer. So it's not even really a starting point in negotiations between the House and Senate. So I don't it's possible. It could certainly happen. But it seems unlikely at this point, given what we now.

Ross Gianfortune   
Well, let's let's pivot a little, and we'll end on this: the Republicans are going to take the house, there'll be a change in party control. What's that going to mean for federal employees sort of broadly? And more specifically, about paying benefits for feds?

Erich Wagner
I think you'll see. With the house entering Republican control, you'll see more disagreement between the two chambers about federal pay issues. Yet, it might become one of the sticking points in negotiations in few Sure years on spending issues. So far, it hasn't really come up yet, though, as something that Republicans have promised, which is different from, you know, say some of the things that Republicans are already saying about trying to cut or delay Social Security benefits and using the debt limit as a chance to try to do that. So I don't know exactly what form it'll take, but you will likely see some pushback from Republicans on some of these federal compensation issues as well.

Ross Gianfortune  
Yeah, it seems like that that's always part of the changeover in party and certainly, you know, the split Congress will be full of of head butting, I am sure, including that which we cover, like the issues around Federal workforce there. Thanks so much for being on the show with us.

Erich Wagner
Thanks for having me.

	
Ross Gianfortune
Thanks for listening to GovExec Daily. Our show was produced by Adam Butler and hosted by me, Ross Gianfortune. We want to thank Erich Wagner for joining the program. Our music is the song “Signals” by Catfish Dancing. Be sure to rate, review and subscribe on Spotify or Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. You can email us any feedback at podcast @ govexec.com or hit us on Twitter @ Govexec.  
 
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