A group of 27 Democratic and independent House and Senate lawmakers are calling on President Biden to enact pay parity across the Federal government for fiscal year (FY) 2025 and equalize civilian government employee pay raises with those in the works for members of the military.
In a letter sent to the president today, lawmakers including Sens. Tim Kaine, D-Va., and Mark Warner, D-Va., alongside Rep. Steny Hoyer, D-Md., and Gerry Connolly, D-Va., requested that he submit a revised pay plan that would provide a 4.5 percent pay increase for the entire Federal workforce.
President Biden’s proposed budget for FY 2025 includes a 4.5 percent pay raise for military personnel and a 2 percent pay raise for Federal civilian employees.
“We write concerned about the lack of parity between the proposed military and civilian pay raises in your Fiscal Year 2025 Budget Request,” the lawmakers wrote. “This deviation between military and civilian employee pay increases upends historical bipartisan support for pay parity across the federal workforce.”
“Specifically, we request you issue a revised alternative pay plan seeking a 4.5% pay increase for the entire federal workforce, including military and civilian employees alike,” the lawmakers continued. “By aligning military and civilian pay raises for 2025, you will recognize the efforts of the entire federal workforce.”
President Biden in August confirmed his intention to give Federal civilian employees a 2.0 percent pay raise next year. He said the across-the-board base pay raise will be 1.7 percent and locality pay increases will average 0.3 percent, resulting in an overall average increase of 2.0 percent – consistent with his FY 2025 budget.
This pay increase would be the smallest since President Biden took office – Federal employees received a 5.2 percent raise in 2024, 4.6 percent in 2023, and 2.7 percent in 2022.
The pay raise for Federal civilian employees is not official until President Biden signs an executive order enacting it, which typically happens in late December.
Lawmakers are expected to vote on the FY 2025 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) this week, which would authorize a 4.5 percent pay raise for all service members.
According to the lawmakers, Federal pay parity has been upheld by previous administrations of both parties over the past two decades.
Today’s letter to President Biden was cosigned by Sens. Ben Cardin, D-Md., Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., John Fetterman, D-Pa., Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, Ed Markey, D-Mass., Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., Ben Ray Luján, D-N.M., Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., and Alex Padilla, D-Calif., as well as Reps. Bobby Scott, D-Va., Don Beyer, D-Va., Abigail Spanberger, D-Va., Jennifer Wexton, D-Va., Jennifer McClellan, D-Va., Eleanor Holmes Norton, D-D.C., C.A. Dutch Ruppersberger, D-Md., Glenn Ivey, D-Md., John Sarbanes, D-Md., Jamie Raskin, D-Md., Donald Norcross, D-N.J., Kweisi Mfume, D-Md., and David Trone, D-Md.
