Fedweek

A group of 15 Democratic senators has introduced a resolution (S-Res. 51) opposing many of the changes under consideration by the Trump administration and Republican leaders in Congress regarding federal employee benefits and workplace rights. The resolution vows to “deny the passage of any legislation, and challenge any action of the executive branch” that: “erodes fair compensation for federal employees, including by reducing wages, unjustifiably raising health insurance premiums, and unnecessarily or irresponsibly reducing the overall federal workforce” including use of a recently-revived House rule called the Holman rule that allows Congress to target the pay and jobs of individual employees; “undermines the value of employee retirement programs, including by reducing earnings on retirement savings, unjustly increasing employee contribution levels, or seeking to transition fully to a private-sector styled plan consisting solely of cash or deferred arrangements”; “diminishes the ability of federal employee unions to effectively represent and protect the rights of employees”; “reduces fundamental protections for civil servants, including the right to due process”; or that “increases the use of nongovernmental contractors to perform inherently governmental functions.” While such a resolution likely will not come to a Senate vote, it amounts to a commitment that the sponsors will vote against any such legislation. In many cases a group of that size would be sufficient to block a bill, since the Senate effectively requires 60 votes in favor of all but bills that are uncontroversial or that are brought up under a relatively rare procedure called reconciliation that requires only a simple majority, which Republicans possess. However, overturning executive actions such as the hiring freeze would require passage by both Republican-controlled chambers of Congress.