[Senate Report 108-207]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]



                                                       Calendar No. 409

108th Congress                                                   Report
 1st Session                     SENATE                         108-207
_______________________________________________________________________

      FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT PAY AND BENEFITS PARITY ACT OF 2003

                               __________

                              R E P O R T

                                 of the

                   COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                          UNITED STATES SENATE

                              to accompany

                                S. 1683

TO PROVIDE FOR A REPORT ON THE PARITY OF PAY AND BENEFITS AMONG FEDERAL 
 LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS AND TO ESTABLISH AN EXCHANGE PROGRAM BETWEEN 
 FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT EMPLOYEES AND STATE AND LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT 
                               EMPLOYEES




               November 22, 2003.--Ordered to be printed





                   COMMITTEE ON GOVERNMENTAL AFFAIRS

                   SUSAN M. COLLINS, Maine, Chairman
TED STEVENS, Alaska                  JOSEPH I. LIEBERMAN, Connecticut
GEORGE V. VOINOVICH, Ohio            CARL LEVIN, Michigan
NORM COLEMAN, Minnesota              DANIEL K. AKAKA, Hawaii
ARLEN SPECTER, Pennsylvania          RICHARD J. DURBIN, Illinois
ROBERT F. BENNETT, Utah              THOMAS R. CARPER, Delaware
PETER G. FITZGERALD, Illinois        MARK DAYTON, Minnesota
JOHN E. SUNUNU, New Hampshire        FRANK LAUTENBERG, New Jersey
RICHARD C. SHELBY, Alabama           MARK PRYOR, Arkansas
           Michael D. Bopp, Staff Director and Chief Counsel
            Jennifer A. Hemingway, Professional Staff Member
   John Salamone, Professional Staff Member, Oversight of Government 
                              Management,
    The Federal Workforce and the District of Columbia Subcommittee
      Joyce A. Rechtschaffen, Minority Staff Director and Counsel
                  Lawrence B. Novey, Minority Counsel
  Emily J. Kirk, Minority Counsel, Oversight of Government Management,
    The Federal Workforce and the District of Columbia Subcommittee
                     Amy B. Newhouse, Chief Clerk.






                                                       Calendar No. 409
108th Congress                                                   Report
                                 SENATE
 1st Session                                                    108-207

======================================================================
 
      FEDERAL LAW ENFORCEMENT PAY AND BENEFITS PARITY ACT OF 2003

                                _______
                                

               November 22, 2003.--Ordered to be printed

                                _______
                                

Ms. Collins, from the Committee on Governmental Affairs, submitted the 
                               following

                              R E P O R T

                         [To accompany S. 1683]

    The Committee on Governmental Affairs, to which was 
referred the bill (S. 1683) to provide for a report on the 
parity of pay and benefits among Federal law enforcement 
officers and to establish an exchange program between Federal 
law enforcement employees and State and local law enforcement 
employees, having considered the same report favorably thereon 
without amendments and recommend that the bill do pass.






                                CONTENTS

                                                                   Page
  I. Purpose and Summary..............................................1
 II. Background.......................................................2
III. Legislative History..............................................4
 IV. Section-by-Section Analysis......................................4
  V. Estimated Cost of Legislation....................................5
 VI. Evaluation of Regulatory Impact..................................5
VII. Changes in Existing Law Made by the Bill, as Reported............6

                         I. PURPOSE AND SUMMARY

    The purpose of S. 1683, the Federal Law Enforcement Pay and 
Benefits Parity Act of 2003, is to require the Office of 
Personnel Management to review the classifications, pay, and 
benefits of law enforcement officers employed within the 
federal government. The intent of this study contained in the 
bill is to identify ways of eliminating disparities and thereby 
to avoid the problems in recruitment and retention and 
unfairness to employees that can result in agencies where the 
pay and benefits are unduly low. The legislation would also 
establish an employee exchange program between federal law 
enforcement agencies and state and local lawenforcement 
agencies to encourage the exchange of best practices and maintain a 
well-trained workforce. The employee exchange program established under 
the bill would be conducted in accordance with provisions of the 
Intergovernmental Personnel Act.\1\
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    \1\ 5 U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 3371 and following.
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                             II. BACKGROUND

    Federal law enforcement officers in different offices and 
agencies are frequently covered by different compensation and 
benefit systems. These discrepancies, if not justified by 
differences in training, responsibilities, or other relevant 
factors, can result in problems of recruitment and retention 
and unfairness to employees at agencies where the pay and 
benefits are seen as unduly low.
    Such differences and resultant problems have expanded 
significantly since the creation of the Transportation Security 
Administration in 2001. Congress created the Transportation 
Security Administration,\2\ in order to address a weakness in 
our homeland defenses. The creation of the Transportation 
Security Administration led to a rapid expansion of the Federal 
Air Marshal Program, which is designed to provide protection 
against highjacking and terrorist attacks on domestic and 
international airline flights. Because Federal Air Marshals are 
not limited to the grade and pay step structure of the General 
Schedule, Federal Air Marshals were offered higher compensation 
and more flexible benefit packages than many other federal 
police forces.
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    \2\ P.L. 107-71.
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    On November 25, 2002, the Homeland Security Act of 2002 was 
enacted into law.\3\ The Act, among other things, transferred 
the Transportation Security Administration into the newly 
created Department of Homeland Security. Federal Air Marshals 
continued to receive pay and benefits substantially higher than 
many other federal law enforcement agencies, including the 
Federal Protective Service and Secret Service Uniformed 
Division, which were also folded into the Department of 
Homeland Security. As a result, many federal law enforcement 
professionals left their police forces to work under the 
Transportation Security Administration as Federal Air Marshals.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \3\ P.L. 107-296.
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    The differences in pay and benefits among federal law 
enforcement officers at different agencies, and the recruitment 
and retention problems that can result, are illustrated in a 
recent report by the U.S. General Accounting Office (GAO) 
compiling data on pay, recruitment, and retention at 13 federal 
police forces in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Area.\4\ 
According to this report, the total turnover at the 13 large 
federal uniformed police forces in the Washington, D.C. area 
studied in the report nearly doubled (from 375 to 729) between 
fiscal years 2001 and 2002. During fiscal year 2002, 8 of the 
13 police forces experienced their highest annual turnover 
rates over a 6-year period, from fiscal years 1997 through 
2002. GAO found that the number (316) of police officers who 
voluntarily separated from the 13 police forces to take 
positions at TSA nearly equaled the increase in the total 
number of separations (354) that occurred between fiscal years 
2001 and 2002. Combined, these departures have left many 
federal law enforcement departments short-handed and competing 
for recruits. Additionally, the Department of Homeland 
Security's new flexible personnel system,\5\ which is expected 
to be established early in 2004, could result in further 
differences between the pay and benefits for law enforcement 
officers at the Department and those at other agencies, 
potentially creating additional unfair discrepancies in pay and 
benefits and recruitment and retention challenges for certain 
federal law enforcement departments.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \4\ Federal Uniformed Police: Selected Data on Pay, Recruitment, 
and Retention at 13 Police Forces in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan 
Area, GAO-03-658, at pages 15-18, June 2003.
    \5\ P.L. 107-296.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In addition to the challenge posed by the establishment of 
new personnel systems that may offer law enforcement officers 
higher pay and benefits, GAO noted a wide disparity in 
compensation at the existing federal law enforcement agencies 
that it studied in the D.C. area. During fiscal year 2002, GAO 
found that entry-level police officer salaries varied by more 
than $10,000 across the 13 police forces, from a high of 
$39,427 per year to a low of $28,801 per year. Four of the 13 
police forces received federal law enforcement retirement 
benefits.\6\ Addressing disparities such as these requires a 
comprehensive examination of all federal law enforcement 
classification, pay, and benefit systems.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \6\ Federal Uniformed Police: Selected Data on Pay, Recruitment, 
and Retention at 13 Police Forces in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan 
Area, GAO-03-658, page 9, June 2003.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The study required under this legislation should assist 
this Committee and others in Congress as we attempt to address 
these disparities. Specifically, the legislation would require 
the Office of Personnel Management to review the 
classification, compensation, and benefits for the federal 
government's law enforcement officers by April 30, 2004. OPM 
would be required to make recommendations for the elimination 
of disparities in classifications, pay, and benefits for law 
enforcement officers throughout the federal government, which 
would be helpful to the Committee and others in Congress as we 
evaluate legislative solutions in an attempt to address the 
recruitment and retention problems caused by unfair 
discrepancies within the federal law enforcement community. 
Eliminating the existing discrepancies will avoid the current 
unfairness to individuals who choose a career as a federal law 
enforcement officer.
    The legislation would also establish an employee exchange 
program between federal law enforcement agencies and state and 
local law enforcement agencies to encourage the exchange of 
best practices and maintain a well-trained workforce. The 
employee exchange program established in the bill would be 
conducted in accordance with provisions of the 
Intergovernmental Personnel Act.\7\ The Intergovernmental 
Personnel Act Mobility Program provides for the temporary 
assignment of personnel between the Federal Government and 
state and local governments, colleges and universities, Indian 
tribal governments, federally funded research and development 
centers, and other eligible organizations.
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    \7\ P.L. 91-648, 5 U.S.C. Sec. Sec. 3371 and following.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    The exchange program established under the legislation 
would foster collaborative interpersonal relationships between 
our law enforcement communities. Building such relationships 
between members of the law enforcement community and 
understanding the culture of the respective agencies would help 
officers at all levels of government meet the challenge of 
protecting our homeland and fulfilling other critical law 
enforcement missions.

                        III. LEGISLATIVE HISTORY

    S. 1683 was introduced on September 30, 2003, by Senator 
George V. Voinovich and cosponsored by Senator Susan M. 
Collins, and was referred to the Senate Committee on 
Governmental Affairs. The bill was referred to the Subcommittee 
on Oversight of Government Management, the Federal Workforce 
and the District of Columbia on October 1, 2003. S. 1683 was 
favorably polled from the Subcommittee on October 6, 2003. The 
Committee on Governmental Affairs favorably reported S. 1683 by 
voice vote on October 22, 2003.
    Present were Senators Collins, Akaka, Bennett, Coleman, 
Fitzgerald, Lautenberg, Levin, Pryor and Voinovich.

                    IV. SECTION-BY-SECTION ANALYSIS

Sec. 1. Short title

    This section establishes the short title of the bill as the 
``Federal Law Enforcement Pay and Benefits Parity Act of 
2003.''

Sec. 2. Law Enforcement Pay and Benefits Parity Report

    Subsection (a) establishes the definition of law 
enforcement officer to be an individual who is defined as a law 
enforcement officer under section 8331 or 8401 of title 5, U.S. 
Code, or an individual who is employed by the federal 
government and whose duties include the investigation, 
apprehension, or detention of individuals suspected or 
convicted of offenses against the United States.
    Subsection (b) directs the Office of Personnel Management 
to review the classification, pay, and benefits of federal law 
enforcement officers, and requires OPM to submit a report to 
the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House of 
Representatives and the appropriate committees of Congress by 
April 30, 2004. Subsection (b) states that the report shall 
include: (1) a comparison of classifications, pay, and benefits 
among law enforcement officers across the federal government; 
and (2) recommendations for ensuring, to the maximum extent 
practicable, the elimination of disparities in classifications, 
pay, and benefits for law enforcement officers throughout the 
federal government.

Sec. 3. Employee exchange program between Federal employees and 
        employees of State and local governments

    Subsection (a) defines the terms ``employing agency,'' 
``participating employees'' and ``program'' for Section 3.
    Subsection (b) requires the establishment of an employee 
exchange program between federal law enforcement agencies and 
state and local law enforcement agencies.
    Subsection (c) states that the program shall be conducted 
in accordance with subchapter VI of chapter 33 of title 5, U.S. 
Code (provisions of the Intergovernmental Personnel Act).
    Subsection (d) states that an employee of an employing 
agency who performs law enforcement functions may be selected 
to participate in the Program if the employee has been employed 
by that employing agency for a period of more than 3 years; has 
had appropriate training or experience to perform the work 
required by the assignment; has had an overall rating of 
satisfactory or higher on performance appraisals from the 
employing agency during the 3-year period before being assigned 
to another agency under this section; and agrees to return to 
the employing agency after completing the assignment for a 
period not less than the length of the assignment.
    Subsection (e) would require that an employee shall enter 
into a written agreement regarding the terms and conditions of 
the assignment prior to beginning the assignment with another 
agency.

                    V. ESTIMATED COST OF LEGISLATION

S. 1683--Federal Law Enforcement Pay and Benefits Parity Act of 2003

    S. 1683 would require the Office of Personnel Management 
(OPM) to submit a report to the Congress by April 30, 2004, on 
the different pay and benefit classifications used by federal 
law enforcement agencies. The report also would include 
recommendations to eliminate the disparities between different 
agencies in pay and benefits for law enforcement personnel. In 
addition, the bill would establish an employee exchange program 
for law enforcement officers working for federal, state, and 
local governments.
    CBO estimates that implementing S. 1683 would have no 
significant impact on the federal budget. Based on information 
from OPM, we estimate that the cost to complete and distribute 
the report would be less than $500,000 in fiscal year 2004, 
assuming the availability of appropriated funds. In addition, 
the Intergovernmental Personnel Act (IPA) Mobility Program 
already authorizes the temporary assignment of personnel 
exchanges between the federal government and state and local 
governments. Any exchange of employees that involves 
reimbursement would be subject to the availability of 
appropriated funds. OPM's Office of Merit Systems Oversight and 
Effectiveness, which oversees IPA, estimates that there are 
currently about 2,100 individuals involved in this exchange 
program, including fewer than 10 law enforcement personnel. CBO 
expects that establishing a new exchange program specifically 
for law enforcement officers would not have a significant 
impact on the federal budget.
    S. 1683 contains no intergovernmental or private-sector 
mandates as defined in the Unfunded Mandates Reform Act and 
would impose no costs on state, local, or tribal governments.
    The CBO staff contact for this estimate is Matthew 
Pickford. The estimate was approved by Peter H. Fontaine, 
Deputy Assistant Director for Budget Analysis Division.

                  VI. EVALUATION OF REGULATORY IMPACT

    Paragraph 11(b)(1) of rule XXVI of the Standing Rules of 
the Senate requires that each report accompanying a bill 
evaluate ``the regulatory impact which would be incurred in 
carrying out this bill.''
    The enactment of this legislation will not have significant 
regulatory impact.

                      VII. CHANGES IN EXISTING LAW

    In compliance with paragraph 12 of rule XXVI of the 
Standing Rules of the Senate, the Committee notes that the 
legislation is a free-standing bill that will make no changes 
to any existing law.

                                
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