Retirement Proposals Sent to Congress

By: fedweek

The Bush administration has proposed as legislation several changes in retirement policy that it announced earlier this year that it would seek. One provision would eliminate the benefit reduction that currently applies to CSRS employees who switch to part-time work late in their careers; similar proposals have been offered numerous times in the past. Another provision would allow agencies to rehire retirees without the standard offset between the annuity and the salary; currently, some agencies may waive the offset and others may request OPM for a waiver, but the conditions are limited. The proposal would let agencies waive the offset at their discretion, but there would be limits on how many hours a rehired retiree could work without an offset—only up to 520 hours in the first six months after retirement, 1,040 over any 12 months and no more than six years’ worth. The proposal also includes technical corrections to provisions involving retirement credit for military academy time and service time by military retirees.