[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 105 (Thursday, July 30, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S9343]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




TREASURY AND GENERAL GOVERNMENT APPROPRIATIONS ACT, 1999--AMENDMENT NO. 
                                  3385

  Mr. STEVENS. Mr. President, on another subject, time will expire at 2 
o'clock on the items to be voted on included in the Treasury and 
general government operations bill. I offered amendment No. 3385 
regarding recomputation of some Federal annuities. I point out that 
this option is not mandatory. The only way future retired employees can 
take advantage of this provision is if they make a payment into the 
Federal retirement system.
  Several times in recent years, Congress has denied COLA adjustments 
for Federal employees. In some years, only Members of Congress were 
denied COLAs. In other years, other employees were affected.
  My amendment provides that Federal employees covered by the Civil 
Service Retirement System and the Federal Employees Retirement System 
who did not receive automatic pay adjustments because of an act of 
Congress may, upon retirement, have their high-three salary recomputed 
as if they received the COLAs provided to annuitants.
  This option cannot be exercised until the covered employee pays into 
the Civil Service Retirement Fund the amounts required by the 
amendment; namely, the contributions to the retirement fund the 
employee would have made if the employee had received the annuitant 
COLA.
  It is really a fairness issue, to me. I am most concerned about 
survivors. Currently, 26 percent of all those who receive Federal 
annuities are survivors and the median time for a survivor annuity is 
just over 12 years. Survivors live on 55 percent of the employee's 
annuity. But, Mr. President, when an employee does not receive a COLA 
received by retired annuitants--and I point out that in almost every 
year, the retired annuitant, the people retired, have received the 
COLAs--then it simply means that survivors of retired employees receive 
greater annuities, greater compensation than those received by 
survivors of employees who continued to serve during the period when 
Congress denied COLAs to current Members and employees.
  I believe the right thing to do is to adopt this concept. It allows 
the employee or the survivor of the employee who has passed on to ask 
for recomputation of the high-three concept based upon an assumption 
that the retiree had received the cost-of-living adjustments that were 
given to retired annuitants in the period when those were denied to 
Congress or other Federal employees.
  I urge my colleagues to adopt this amendment. I will have a minute to 
talk about it when the amendment comes up for a vote, as we start 
voting at 2 o'clock. I wanted this in the Record at this point.
  I thank the Chair.

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