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For Immediate Release
Office of the Press Secretary
November 28, 2007
Text of a Letter from the President to the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the President of the Senate
November 27, 2007
Dear Madam Speaker: (Mr. President:)
I am transmitting an alternative plan for locality pay increases payable to
civilian Federal employees covered by the General Schedule (GS) and certain other pay systems in January 2008.
Under title 5, United States Code, civilian Federal employees covered by
the GS and certain other pay systems would receive a two-part pay increase
in January 2008: (1) a 2.5 percent across the-board adjustment in
scheduled rates of basic pay derived from Employment Cost Index data on
changes in the wages and salaries of private industry workers, and (2)
locality pay adjustments averaging 12.5 percent based on Bureau of Labor
Statistics salary surveys of non-Federal employers in each locality pay
area. According to the statutory formula, for Federal employees covered by
the locality pay system, the overall average pay increase would be about
15.0 percent.
Title 5, United States Code, authorizes me to implement an alternative
locality pay plan if I view the adjustments that would otherwise take
effect as inappropriate due to "national emergency or serious economic
conditions affecting the general welfare." For the reasons described
below, I have determined that it is appropriate to exercise my statutory
alternative plan authority to set alternative January 2008 locality pay
increases.
A national emergency, within the meaning of chapter 53 of title 5, has
existed since September 11, 2001. Full statutory civilian pay increases
would cost $16.4 billion in 2008 alone. That amount exceeds by $12.7
billion the cost of a 3.0 percent overall Federal civilian pay increase
that I proposed in my 2008 Budget. Furthermore, the costs would grow at
compounded rates in subsequent years. Such cost increases would force deep
cuts in discretionary spending or Federal employment to stay within budget.
Either outcome would unacceptably interfere with our Nation's ability to
secure the homeland and pursue the war on terrorism.
Accordingly, I have determined that under the authority of section 5304a of
title 5, United States Code, locality-based comparability payments for the
locality pay areas established by the President's Pay Agent, in the amounts
set forth in the attached table, shall become effective on the first day of
the first applicable pay period beginning on or after January 1, 2008.
When compared with the payments currently in effect, these comparability
payments will increase the General Schedule payroll by about 0.5 percent.
When combined with the 2.5 percent across-the-board increase, the 3.0
percent total increase equals the 12 month increase in overall nationwide
labor costs as of September 2006 (the reference period for decisions about
the January 2008 pay adjustment under current law). Our national situation
precludes granting larger locality pay increases at this time.
Finally, the law requires that I include in this report an assessment of
the impact of my decision on the Government's ability to recruit and retain
well-qualified employees. I do not believe this decision will materially
affect our ability to continue to attract and retain a quality Federal
workforce. To the contrary, since any pay raise above the amount proposed
in this alternative plan would likely be unfunded, agencies would have to
absorb the additional cost and could have to freeze hiring to pay the
higher rates. Moreover, the GS "quit" rate continues to be very low (2.1
percent on an annual basis), well below the overall average "quit" rate in
private enterprise. Should the need arise, the Government has many
compensation flexibilities, such as special salary rates and recruitment
and retention incentives, to maintain the high quality workforce that
serves our Nation.
Sincerely,
GEORGE W. BUSH
# # #
Alternative Plan for 2008 Locality-Based Comparability Payments
| |
|
Locality Pay Area |
Locality Payment |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Gainesville, GA-AL |
16.59% |
| Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-NH-RI-ME |
21.74 |
| Buffalo-Niagara-Cattaraugus, NY |
14.76 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Michigan City, IL-IN-WI |
22.47 |
| Cincinnati-Middletown-Wilmington, OH-KY-IN |
17.57 |
| Cleveland-Akron-Elyria, OH |
16.53 |
| Columbus-Marion-Chillicothe, OH |
15.40 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth, TX |
18.04 |
| Dayton-Springfield-Greenville, OH |
14.76 |
| Denver-Aurora-Boulder, CO |
20.52 |
| Detroit-Warren-Flint, MI |
22.03 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-Willimantic, CT-MA |
23.20 |
| Houston-Baytown-Huntsville, TX |
27.02 |
| Huntsville-Decatur, AL |
13.92 |
| Indianapolis-Anderson-Columbus, IN |
13.25 |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Riverside, CA |
24.64 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-Pompano Beach, FL |
18.70 |
| Milwaukee-Racine-Waukesha, WI |
16.13 |
| Minneapolis-St. Paul-St. Cloud, MN-WI |
18.80 |
| New York-Newark-Bridgeport, NY-NJ-CT-PA |
25.46 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Vineland, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
19.49 |
| Phoenix-Mesa-Scottsdale, AZ |
13.98 |
| Pittsburgh-New Castle, PA |
14.54 |
| Portland-Vancouver-Beaverton, OR-WA |
18.17 |
| Raleigh-Durham-Cary, NC |
16.50 |
| Richmond, VA |
14.90 |
| Sacramento—Arden-Arcade—Yuba City, CA-NV |
19.62 |
| San Diego-Carlsbad-San Marcos, CA |
21.17 |
| San Jose-San Francisco-Oakland, CA |
31.43 |
| Seattle-Tacoma-Olympia, WA |
19.16 |
| Washington-Baltimore-Northern Virginia, DC-MD-VA-WV-PA |
19.73 |
| Rest of U.S. |
12.91 |
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