No ‘Alternative’ Raise Recommendation Made

The White House did not use its authority to recommend an “alternative” federal pay raise by the August 31 deadline, a decision that most likely will have little practical effect. By not proposing a figure, the administration allowed a provision of federal pay law to take effect that sets a default raise of 1.7 percent for January 2007. Under the law, that number is set by taking a half percentage point off the employment cost index number for the pertinent measuring period. The default raise figure is important only if Congress and the White House fail to agree on a raise through the appropriations process by December 31. Twice in recent years that has happened and the default raise has kicked in, only to be overridden by higher raises that were enacted soon after.