CBO Report Provides Options

The prospects of budget cuts come as the Congressional Budget Office released its annual report outlining-although not specifically recommending-possible areas to cut in federal spending. These included several ideas raised in the past, including: basing the government contribution toward Federal Employees Health Benefits premiums on a dollar amount linked to general inflation, not to the generally higher inflation in the health care sector; reducing retiree cost-of-living adjustments by a half-percentage point for those retired under CSRS and basing all FERS COLAs on inflation minus a full percentage point; for future retirees, switching the benefits formula to a “high-four” year salary base and linking the employer contribution to FEHB premiums to years of service; paying the full agency Thrift Savings Plan contribution for FERS employees only for those investing at least 10 percent of salary; and charging employees commercial rates for parking.