Fedweek

The Bush administration has once again requested changes in the Federal Employees’ Compensation Act, the workplace illness and injury benefits program that it says would bring the program more in line with practices in similar state government programs. “Under current law, individuals can receive FECA benefits indefinitely, as long as their injury or illness diminishes their wage-earning capacity. Because they are tax-free, FECA benefits typically exceed federal retirement benefits, which entices individuals to remain on FECA past when they would otherwise have retired,” the administration says in a budget justification document. The proposed legislation primarily would amend FECA to prospectively convert retirement-age beneficiaries to a retirement annuity-level benefit, impose a waiting period for benefits, streamline claims processing, and permit the government to recapture compensation costs from responsible third parties. The projected 10-year saving to the government is $592 million. Similar proposals have been made in the past but not enacted.