Government affairs

Legislative Updates

House budget resolution passes out of committee

Today, the House Budget Committee passed the “Budget for a Brighter American Future,” the House Republican fiscal year 2019 (FY19) budget resolution, out of committee and on to the floor in a party-line 21-13 vote. The plan would increase defense spending and cut domestic spending by $8 trillion in an attempt to balance the budget by 2027.

A budget resolution traditionally kicks off the appropriations process and is meant to be a blueprint for the 12 individual appropriations measures considered each fiscal year. However, this year, like last year, the resolution was released after much of the work has already moved forward.

Also like last year, this year’s version includes similar language with the intent to hurt federal employees and retirees through cuts to benefits, pay, and basic worker protections, such as increasing employee contributions to the Federal Employees Retirement System (FERS), costing active carriers up to $3,600-4,350 per year; and eliminating the annuity supplement that covers the gap for employees who retire under FERS before they qualify for Social Security benefits at age 62. For letter carriers and other blue-collar federal employees with physically taxing jobs, this cut would be especially painful.

Similar proposals can be found in the FY19 White House budget, the FY19 Republican Study Committee (RSC) budget, and in a letter from OPM Director Jeff Pon to Speaker Paul Ryan, among others.

The Senate has yet to release its FY19 budget resolution. NALC will continue to monitor the FY19 appropriations process and will keep its members up to date on any attempts to hurt federal employees.

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