Pay Issue a Perennial

President Bush will release his annual budget proposals in about four weeks and if he follows recent practice will not recommend changes in benefits but will recommend a federal raise smaller than that set for military personnel. In recent years, though, Congress has passed annual federal raises the same as those for the uniformed military. Again, if past practice is followed, the indicated military raise for January 2007-and thus the target “parity” figure for federal employees-is 2.7 percent. However, this year the pay raise deliberations will play out against the backdrop of expected changes in pay-setting practices at the Department of Defense, where the first group of affected employees under the national security personnel system will see a difference in their January 2007 raises. President Bush has not proposed significant changes to benefits programs such as retirement and health insurance-the two big-ticket federal benefits programs-but pressures to limit spending exist because of the deficits.