Military Figure a More Reliable Indicator

Under a separate pay law for the military, the starting point for raises for uniformed personnel is a half percentage point above the pertinent ECI figure. In recent years the federal raise has been pegged to the military figure in the name of “parity” between federal civilian and uniformed military personnel. For the last several years the average military raise actually has been a bit higher than the “parity” figure because of targeted higher raises for certain military personnel. However, the parity figure for purposes of the 2005 raise would start at 3.5 percent, if recent practice is followed. In any case, the actual raise is determined in the annual federal budget process.