Federal Managers Association

For more information on the hearing and complete witness testimony, please visit: http://hsgac.senate.gov/public/. For a copy of FMA’s testimony, please visit: www.fedmanagers.org.

FMA PUSHES FOR INCREASE IN SSA APPROPRIATIONS

Last month, the Federal Managers Association was one of over forty organizations which signed onto a letter to the House and Senate Appropriations Subcommittees on Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies . The letter respectfully asks for the Subcommittee to allocate no less than $240 million above the President’s budget request for the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) administrative expenses.

This additional funding is critical for SSA to address an ever increasing number of service delivery issues.  The most critical issue is the massive backlog in disability hearings. Currently, over 750,000 hearings are pending, and the average wait for a decision is over 500 days. Although SSA is beginning to make progress on the hearings backlog, the agency does not expect the backlog to be eliminated until 2013 unless additional resources are provided.

FMA has continually advocated for adequate funds in order for SSA to lessen the backlog of disability cases. Since 2001, Congress has appropriated, on average, $180 million less than the President has requested each year.  The dollar value of this differential is equivalent to processing an additional 177,000 initial claims and 454,000 hearings. Over the last ten years (FY98 – FY07), Congress has appropriated nearly $1.3 billion less than the President’s request. Without a doubt, this has had a devastating effect on the services provided to the American public, as evidenced by the situation we are in today.

“The bottom line is that the hearing offices lack sufficient staff to process the work on hand much less even begin to work on new cases,” commented FMA National President Darryl Perkinson. “It should be evident that under the best case scenario, the current staffing levels in ODAR barely maintain the status quo. That means that the backlog stays the same and processing times continue at an estimated 500 days.”

FMA COMMENTS ON LEGISLATION TO REEMPLOY ANNUITANTS

On May 20, 2008, the House Oversight and Government Reform Subcommittee on the Federal Workforce, Postal Service and the District of Columbia held a hearing entitled, The Cost and Benefits of the Reemployment of Federal Part-time Annuitants. The hearing focused on legislation, H.R. 3579, introduced by Congressman Tom Davis (R-Va.), which would allow federal retirees to return to service part-time without offset to annuity. FMA National President Darryl Perkinson sent a letter and statement for the record to Subcommittee Chairman Danny Davis (D-Ill.) and Ranking Member Kenny Marchant (R-Tex.) expressing FMA’s support for the legislation.

Perkinson commented in the letter, “ As you are undoubtedly aware, the federal government is on the verge of what has been called a ‘retirement tsunami.’ The rate at which federal employees are retiring from the federal government is cause for concern. The Office of Personnel Management estimates that over 50,000 employees retire annually and that 60 percent of the government's 1.8 million workers will be eligible to retire over the next 10 years. It concerns us that when the baby boomer generation retires, there will be a mass exodus from the federal government of highly skilled personnel with strong institutional knowledge.”

Currently, federal employees who strive to continue to serve the nation after retirement are penalized for returning to work in the form of a pay reduction to offset federal retirement annuity. H.R 3579 would authorize federal agencies to reemploy retired federal employees on a limited basis, without forcing the employee to take a reduction in salary corresponding to their retirement annuity. Employment would be limited to 1,040 hours (130 days) in any twelve-month period, for a total of six years without penalty to annuity.

"The Federal workforce is aging, and many of our employees are reaching retirement eligibility," testified Nancy Kichak, Office of Personnel Management Associate Director for Strategic Human Resources Policy. "Many of these individuals have the skills needed to mentor the next generation of Federal workers, and to accomplish sensitive, short-term projects, but we need a mechanism that will not penalize them for doing so."

Perkinson went on to say, “This bill will mitigate the loss of federal employees to retirement and ensure that the government can function effectively. The legislation will also fill critical gaps and help train the next generation of federal managers by retaining institutional memory. This is a crucial tool for successful recruitment, retention, and mentorship between experienced federal employees and new civil servants.”

For more information on the hearing, please visit: http://federalworkforce.oversight.house.gov/.

*************************************************************

LEGISLATORS ASK FOR COMMENTS ON POTENTIAL TSP CHANGES

Last month, the top leaders of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee sent a letter to Andrew Saul, Chairman of the Federal Retirement Thrift Investment Board (FRTIB), requesting comments on potential legislative changes to the Thrift Savings Plan (TSP).

The Committee is considering three options: to automatically enroll federal employees in the TSP; to make the life-cycle funds the default option for employees who do not select a fund; and, to make a Roth option available to participants.

Currently under the system, participants invest pretax dollars in the plan and pay taxes when they withdraw their earnings in retirement. Under a Roth option, participants would invest after-tax earnings and withdraw them tax-free in retirement. Also, as it stands now, employees must voluntarily elect to participate in the TSP program. The change as advocated by the lawmakers would automatically enroll both military and civilian employees at three percent of their income, or at another amount no less than two percent and no more than five percent.

Chairman Henry Waxman (D-Cali.) and Ranking Member Tom Davis (R-Va.) said in the letter, “We regard the TSP as the premier retirement savings program in the nation. But we also recognize that the law creating the TSP was enacted over 20 years ago and has been only infrequently updated. The provisions in the discussion draft reflect ideas for modernizing and strengthening the TSP that we believe merit additional consideration.”

Darryl Perkinson , FMA’s National President and a member of the Employee Thrift Advisory Council, commented, “The life cycle funds have proven to be an excellent investment opportunity for employees and as such, should be the TSP default option. By tying investments to your target retirement date, the L funds balance both risk and reward.”

To view a copy of the letter and the draft legislation, please visit: http://oversight.house.gov/.

IN THE WAKE OF INCREASING GAS PRICES, TELEWORK BILL PASSES HOUSE

Last week, the House of Representatives passed legislation, H.R. 4106, which would require agencies to develop a program allowing employees to telework at least 20 percent of the hours worked during a two-week period. This is the equivalent of two workdays for most full-time employees. The legislation was introduced by Congressman Danny Davis (D-Ill.).

If signed into law, the legislation will incorporate teleworking into the continuity of operations planning of agencies. The legislation does not allow federal employees who handle sensitive information, work on national security and intelligence matters, or have a position that requires their physical presence in the office, to telecommute.

The legislation would also require the General Services Administration (GSA) to maintain a central telework Web site. Further, the legislation limits the Government Accountability Office annual reporting requirement to ten years. The legislation delineates telework as covering all authorized activities that can be performed from an alternate worksite.

“Managers across the board view balance of work and life as well as the impact on employee recruitment and retention as the major motivational factors in enrolling in a telecommuting program,” commented FMA National President Darryl Perkinson. “This is an important step forward in ensuring agencies develop a telework-friendly environment.”

For more information on the legislation, please visit: http://thomas.loc.gov/.

ARE YOU OVERPAYING FOR PRESCRIPTION DRUG COVERAGE?

In a letter to Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Director Linda Springer and Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Acting Administrator Kerry Weems, Congressmen Henry Waxman (D-Cali.) and Danny Davis (D-Ill.) questioned why over 200,000 retirees with federal retiree drug coverage have also enrolled for “duplicative” and “unnecessary” Medicare Part D drug benefits.

According to the Democratic lawmakers, over 200,000 federal retirees are enrolled in both Federal Employee Health Benefit Plans (FEHBP) with drug benefits and separate Medicare Part D drug benefits. Because CMS and OPM have not acted to require or ensure effective coordination of the drug benefits, the private insurers offering Medicare D coverage appear to be reaping a $200 million windfall annually, paid for by the retirees and American taxpayers.

The letter stated, “Despite the mandates of the law, CMS and OPM are apparently not coordinating coverage. On April 21, 2008, OPM briefed staff on several new pilot proposals for the FEHBP. At this briefing, OPM indicated that they were aware of over 200,000 federal retirees who were enrolled in both FEHB plans with drug coverage and Medicare Part D drug plans. OPM officials also indicated that there was no ongoing coordination between the two programs, explaining that in most cases, Medicare Part D plans and FEHB plans were not even aware of whether the retirees were enrolled in both programs.”

Springer and Weems were asked to provide the Congressmen with information on improving coordination between their agencies and to clarify how dual coverage affects federal employees by May 16, 2008. To view a copy of the letter, please visit: http://oversight.house.gov/.

HOUSE AND SENATE APPROVE 2009 BUDGET RESOLUTION

Last week, both the House and Senate approved the conference report for the fiscal year 2009 budget (S.Con.Res. 70). Democrats hailed passage as a victory, as this is the first time since 2000 a budget has been passed during an election year. The legislation also expresses the sense of Congress that military and civilian pay raises should be at parity in 2009.

The budget calls for $24.5 billion more in discretionary spending than the $991.6 billion President Bush requested. According to House Budget Committee Chairman John Spratt, the bill, “returns the budget to balance – reaching a surplus of $22 billion in 2012 and $10 billion in 2013.  It adheres to key budget enforcement tools implemented last year, such as the pay-as-you-go rule.  And it includes additional procedural protections to help ensure fiscal responsibility.”

The bill was passed on strict party lines, with no Republicans in either chamber voting in the affirmative and fourteen Democrats bucking their leadership in the House. House Budget Committee Ranking Member Paul Ryan (R-Wis.) stated, “The budget conference report for fiscal year 2009 calls for record tax increases, raises discretionary spending by $241 billion above the President over 5 years, and does nothing to reform entitlements or earmarks. Even worse, Democrats already have signaled their intent to put off appropriations until after the next election – making this ‘budget’ an exercise in futility.”

Budget resolutions are not binding, but set spending guidelines for the appropriations process. For more information on the FY09 budget resolution, please visit: www.thomas.loc.gov.

************************************************************

SURVEY OF SENIOR EXECUTIVES BRINGS MIXED RESULTS

On May 13, 2008, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) issued the government-wide results from the 2008 Survey of the Senior Executive Service (SES). The survey was administered online in January and February to all SES employees and focused on the new SES pay-for-performance system, executive development and general attitudes toward work. The survey had a 65 percent response rate.

Over ninety percent of SES respondents believe their pay should be based on performance and feel they are held accountable for achieving results, as well as the fact that they participated in the development of their performance plan. Additionally, Senior Executives as a group are proud to be in the SES, they feel a sense of accomplishment through their work, and feel their talents are well used.

However, only sixty percent of SES respondents said they were satisfied with their pay; down from 73 percent in the 2006 Federal Human Capital Survey. In addition, only 68 percent believe their appraisal fairly reflected their performance; down from 74 percent in the same 2006 survey.

Despite the mixed results, OPM Director Linda Springer commented, “The results of the survey show the SES is a committed and qualified group of people dedicated to their work on behalf of the American people… It also points out that the federal government has work to do in order to continue to develop and attract a highly qualified executive workforce."

To view the full survey results, please visit: www.opm.gov/surveys/results/index.asp.

OPM PAUSES WORK ON PART OF ITS ONLINE RETIREMENT SYSTEM

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced early last week it has suspended the agency's effort to modernize processing of federal employee retirements. OPM issued a stop work order for the implementation of the calculation engine, one of the three components of the modernization project known as RetireEZ. In addition to the stop work order, OPM issued a show cause notice to Hewitt, the contractor developing the system, giving them 10 calendar days to respond to the performance issues OPM raised.

"It is just a pause to determine how we go forward, either with Hewitt or with someone else," OPM Director Linda Springer told the Washington Post. "It is not a pause for the whole project; it is only a pause for the calculation engine piece." Annuitants will not be adversely impacted by this action.

The other two components of RetireEZ, data conversion and change management, will continue as planned. Progress to date on those two components has already resulted in improvements in the federal retirement processing, according to OPM. This foundation, when joined with a successful calculation engine, will enable all federal employees to plan for and process their retirements electronically.

The new retirement administration program aims to move federal agencies to the 21 st century by ending a labor-intensive, paper-based process to a modern process, complete with all of the federal military service records needed to compute the annuities of federal employees. This technologically-reliant process will improve the storage, retrieval and transfer of employment and benefits information making the transition into retirement easier.

For more information on RetireEZ, please visit: www.opm.gov.

INTELLIGENCE COMMUNITY UNVEILS PAY-FOR-PERFORMANCE SYSTEM

At a media briefing on May 15, 2008, Chief Human Capital Officer (CHCO) for the intelligence community, Ron Sanders, announced that the Office of the Director of National Intelligence (DNI) will begin implementing a common pay-for-performance system across the 16 intelligence agencies starting in September.

"This initiative has the potential to truly transform the IC. It will enable us to reward our employees when they meet or exceed our performance expectations, while ensuring that they keep pace with our competition in the labor market. At the same time, it will help us reinforce those common values and competencies that are central to a culture of collaboration," said Director of National Intelligence Mike McConnell.

The National Civilian Compensation Program (NICCP), as the pay-for-performance system is called, is a transformational human capital initiative designed to ensure that the IC can continue to recruit, reward, and retain the world's premier intelligence workforce according to DNI.

“Our emphasis is on collaboration, sharing. Our emphasis is on something like a 360-degree appraisal,” McConnell went on to say. “So we’ve thought about this holistically, so that we have a performance-based system that differentiates in recognizing superior performance, and we have a developmental mindset about how we do our training and appraisals and our process so that we address all of the levers to raise the performance of this community.”

For more information on the endeavor, please visit: http://www.dni.gov/.

MANAGEMENT SCORECARD FOR THE SECOND QUARTER RELEASED

The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) released the President’s Management Agenda (PMA) Scorecard for the second quarter of fiscal year 2008, showing a continued trend for improved agency performance government-wide.

This quarter, nearly 50 percent of agency status scores were Green, the highest possible, and more than 75 percent of all “progress” scores were Green.  The Department of Labor, Social Security Administration and Environmental Protection Agency all maintained green scores for both status and progress on all five government-wide PMA initiatives.

The Executive Branch Management Scorecard monitors how well the 26 departments and major agencies are executing the government-wide management initiatives as part of the President’s Management Agenda. The five initiatives include: human capital, competitive sourcing, financial performance, e-government, and budget and performance integration. The scorecard employs a grading system common today in business: green for success, yellow for mixed results, and red for unsatisfactory.

The full scorecard can be found at www.results.gov.

NEW FACES IN THE ADMINISTRATION

On June 5, 2008, Steve Preston was sworn in as the 14th Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Prior to joining HUD, Secretary Preston served as the Administrator of the Small Business Administration, where he spearheaded a reform agenda to make the agency more responsive, accountable, and effective.

“Steve is a strong leader whose understanding of our financial markets and strong management skills make him highly qualified to serve in this important position,” President Bush said of his confirmation. “He will aggressively work to ensure that the Department remains focused on its mission of making housing more affordable and helping Americans keep their homes.  Steve is also a consensus builder who will build on our efforts to work with Congress on responsible legislation addressing our Nation’s housing policies.”

For more information on this appointment, please visit: www.hud.gov.

On May 8, 2008, President Bush nominated Thomas D. Cairns to be Chief Human Capital Officer at the Department of Homeland Security (DHS).  Dr. Cairns currently serves as a Principal at the Cairns Blaner Group, LLC.  Prior to this, he served as Senior Vice President for Human Resources at NBC Universal.  Earlier in his career, he served as the Vice President of Employee Relations at NBC.  Dr. Cairns received his bachelor's degree from Rider University.  He received his master's degree and DBA from Nova Southeastern University. 

“ Tom has a long history as a senior human resource executive with demonstrated success leading human resource organizations and supporting senior business executives in a high-performance culture,” said DHS Secretary Michael Chertoff. “I look forward to working with Tom as we aggressively build a world-class organization, and as we continue to hire and retain a talented and diverse workforce. Tom will soon experience first-hand the remarkable dedication, great professionalism and outstanding performance that our employees bring each day to securing the homeland.”

For more information on this appointment, please visit: www.dhs.gov.

************************************************************

REGISTER NOW FOR FMA’S 17 TH ANNUAL MID-YEAR CONFERENCE!

Please join us for FMA’s 17th annual Mid-Year Conference and Management Training Seminar, August 6 - 9 2008 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania! This year’s Conference, Where Leadership in Government Began, will be held at the Sheraton Society Hill Hotel. Conference attendees will receive a special room rate of $149/night. You can make reservations by calling the hotel at 215-238-6000 and be sure to ask for the special rate for the Federal Managers Association Mid-Year Conference. Reservations must be made by July 4, 2008. The special rate is available August 3 – 10, 2008.

FMA members are now able to register for the conference via FMA’s Web site at www.fedmanagers.org. Fees for the Conference are as follows:

Early-bird: $325 (until June 27, 2008), Regular: $375, (until July 18, 2008), and Late: $400 (until August 1, 2008). Please continue to check www.fedmanagers.org for the most up-to-date information!

************************************************************

Long Term Care Partners, LLC, FMA Corporate Partner.  Long Term Care Partners is the administrator of t he Federal Long Term Care Insurance Program.  Sponsored by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, the Program is available to Federal and U.S. Postal Service employees and annuitants, active and retired members of the uniformed services, and their qualified relatives.  With more than 210,000 enrollees, it is the largest employer-sponsored long term care insurance program in the country.  FLTCIP policies are simple to understand and offer enrollees some distinct advantages, including comprehensive coverage, competitive and stable rates, international coverage, and administrative service standards that are the highest in the long-term care insurance industry.  Policies are sold direct through a highly-trained, non-commissioned staff with no high pressure sales tactics – simply sound advice.  Visit www.LTCFEDS.com or http://www.opm.gov/insure/ltc/index.asp for more information.

Blue Cross Blue Shield Association Federal Employee Program, FMA Sustaining Corporate Partner:  The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association represents the independent, locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans. The 40 local member companies of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association have provided millions of families with top-quality, affordable health insurance for more than 70 years.  For the one in four Americans who carry Blue Cross and Blue Shield cards, the Blue Plans symbolize health security.  Visit www.fepblue.org and join the best, most-recognized group of health insurance providers in the world.

GEICO, FMA Corporate Partner:  GEICO was created over 60 years ago to insure Federal employees.  Over the years GEICO has continuously strengthened its affiliation with the Federal workforce.  Today GEICO has a special program established to support the Federal community.  GEICO’s Federal program participates in the following organizations and programs: GEICO Public Service Awards, which  have honored Federal workers (active and retired) who have contributed to the public good since 1980; and GEICO Federal Leave Record Cards, which for over 40 years have been provided by GEICO to Federal employees, free of charge, to help them track their annual leave.  Find out how much you could save with GEICO auto insurance as an FMA member by getting a line-by-line rate quote at:  www.geico.com

Shaw, Bransford, Veilleux and Roth, P.C., (SBVR) concentrates its law practice on the representation of Federal employees, with a special emphasis on the representation of executives and managers.  SBVR serves as General Counsel to the Federal Managers Association and is uniquely situated to recognize the interests and viewpoints of Federal managers.  For up to two free half-hour legal consultations and reduced legal fees as an FMA member, please visit:  www.shawbransford.com

The Federal Managers Association and Management Concepts have teamed up to present the Federal Managers Practicum — a targeted certificate program for Federal managers. As the official development program for FMA, the Federal Managers Practicum helps FMA members develop critical skills to meet new workplace demands and deepen their managerial capabilities.  FMA’s leadership fully recognizes the need to prepare career-minded federal employees to manage the demands of the 21 st century workplace with greater competence and fully supports this unique and comprehensive certificate program.  For more information, please visit:  www.managementconcepts.com/fmp/fmpodp.asp

***********************************************************

The Washington Report is published biweekly by the Federal Managers Association.
Jessica Klement, Editor; FMA Staff Writers.

The Federal Managers Association, established in 1913, is the oldest, largest, most influential association representing the interests of the nearly 200,000 managers, supervisors and executives serving in today’s Federal government.

1641 Prince Street ~ Alexandria VA 22314-2818 ~ (703) 683-8700 ~ FAX (703) 683-8707 ~ E-Mail Info@fedmanagers.org

Washington Report Archives