C ongress, which ended its "lame duck" session late Saturday, did not close the deal on bills that would enhance dental and vision benefits for federal employees and revamp rules for the Thrift Savings Plan.
As expected, Congress signed off on a 3.5 percent pay raise for federal employees as part of a $388 billion omnibus spending package. President Bush will decide how to implement the raise, which will take effect in January. If the administration follows traditional practice, Bush will soon issue an executive order that breaks the raise into two components: an across-the-board increase for all General Schedule employees and a geographic adjustment that can vary according to private-sector wages in local labor markets.
_____More Federal Diary_____
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Uncle Sam Is Advised To Get With the Network (The Washington Post, Nov 21, 2004)
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Congressional Aides Expect 3.5 Percent Pay Raise in Bill, Over Bush Objections (The Washington Post, Nov 19, 2004)
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TSP Awards Contract to Consultant for Developing Lifecycle Funds (The Washington Post, Nov 18, 2004)
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Changing to Pay for Performance Will Be Worth the Pain, Private Report Says (The Washington Post, Nov 17, 2004)
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But the dental-vision and TSP bills were left in limbo as Congress departed for its Thanksgiving holiday break.
The Senate, on a voice vote Saturday afternoon, approved the dental-vision bill, which would create a voluntary insurance program to leverage the purchasing power of the government so federal employees and retirees could purchase insurance coverage at favorable rates. The bill's chief sponsors were Sens. Susan Collins (R-Maine) and Daniel K. Akaka (D-Hawaii).
The Federal Employees Health Benefits Program is generally considered to offer paltry coverage for tooth and eye care, and congressional committees have spent much of the year studying proposals to improve those benefits. Under a plan devised by Collins and Akaka, employees and retirees signing up for enhanced dental and vision coverage would be responsible for premium costs so that taxpayers would not be asked to subsidize the coverage.
But the House did not take up the bill before adjourning for the holiday, a spokeswoman for Collins said yesterday.
A reverse order played out on the bill to change rules for the TSP, the 401(k)-type program used by nearly 3.4 million civil service, postal and military employees to save for retirement.
The House approved the bill Friday, but the Senate got caught up on other issues and ran out of time. The spokeswoman for Collins said sponsors hope they can get the bill cleared for a vote in early December, when the Senate has scheduled a brief session. If approved, the bill would go to Bush for his signature.
The legislation would allow federal employees and military personnel to start or change their TSP contributions at any time instead of just during the "open seasons" held twice a year.
The open seasons -- currently April 15 through June 30 and Oct. 15 through Dec. 31 -- are viewed as outdated by the TSP and as unfair by the bill's sponsors. Currently, newly hired employees have 60 days to enroll in the TSP, and if they fail to do so, they must wait until the next open season. Employees who stop their TSP contributions must wait until the second open season, which can mean a delay of close to a year.
Rep. Thomas M. Davis III (R-Va.), chief sponsor of the House's TSP bill, said Friday that he would return next year with another TSP bill that would speed up agency matching contributions to employee accounts. A similar proposal appeared in a prior version of the bill but was dropped because of cost considerations.
House and Senate aides said yesterday that no one factor stopped the bills from winning final approval. As usual in wrap-up sessions, congressional leaders kept most of their focus on the huge spending package and an accompanying short-term spending bill needed to keep non-defense agencies open.
Key lawmakers also became frustrated by events Saturday that led to the collapse of legislation to overhaul the government's intelligence agencies and provide more flexible personnel rules for the FBI. Republicans differed yesterday over whether the reorganization bill, which the president supported, could be salvaged this year.
Mail Handlers on Diary Live
Krista Lannert, a vice president at First Health, which administers the Mail Handlers Benefit Plan, will be the guest at noon tomorrow on Federal Diary Live at www.washingtonpost.comto discuss the 2005 Federal Employees Health Benefits Program and new Mail Handler options. Please join us.
E-mail: barrs@washpost.com
