Meanwhile, the White House still has not issued an executive order to carry out the 4.1 percent pay raise for January 2004 that effectively will mean an increase above current pay levels of about 2 percent for most employees, retroactive to the first pay period of this year-which started January 11 in most cases. Although the sweetened raise has been signed into law, an executive order is needed to address issues including how the additional money will be split between across the board and locality pay. The 2 percent raise that took effect by default in January was paid as 1.5 percent across the board and the funds for the other 0.5 percentage point increase divided up as locality pay. A pay panel earlier recommended that a 4.1 percent raise be divided as 2.7 percent across the board and 1.4 percentage points for locality pay.