The White House released its fiscal year (FY) 2027 budget proposal to Congress on Friday, which does not include a pay raise for civilian employees.
Absent action from Congress or a later executive order from President Donald Trump, the omission signals that most civilian federal employees are unlikely to receive a salary increase in 2027.
Last year, the FY 2026 budget request also did not include a pay raise for civilian employees, but Trump later approved a 1% increase for 2026 in a December executive order.
Typically, presidents include pay adjustments in their annual budget submissions, and last year marked the first time since 2013 that a budget proposal did not include a civilian pay increase.
While civilian employees were left out, the FY 2027 budget proposal calls for a 5% to 7% pay raise for military members in 2027, depending on rank.
“This enduring investment, far above the standard annual military pay raise, builds on the president’s recruiting and retention success, by doubling down on the administration’s goal to restore America’s fighting force,” the document says.
Democratic lawmakers are pushing for a larger pay raise for civilian employees in 2027. Under the FAIR Act, led by Rep. James Walkinshaw, D-Va., and Sen. Brian Schatz, D-Hawaii, federal workers would receive a 4.1% pay increase next year.
In a statement to MeriTalk, Walkinshaw criticized the budget proposal’s omission of a civilian pay raise.
“For 15 months, the Trump Administration has attacked federal employees through reckless DOGE policies, used them as political leverage through two shutdowns, and offered a meager 1% raise in the current fiscal year,” Walkinshaw said. “This budget continues that pattern with an insulting pay freeze, chainsaw slashes to key federal agencies, and no meaningful investment to retain the workforce that continues to serve the American people despite the abuse from the Administration and Republican Congress.”
“As co-chair and founder of the Federal Workforce Caucus, I will keep fighting to deliver exactly that through the FAIR Act, which provides a 4.1% raise grounded in real economic data and the statutory FEPCA formula,” he added.
FEPCA is the Federal Employee Pay Comparability Act, a law designed to close the pay gap between private sector employees and federal employees.
The National Treasury Employees Union (NTEU) also slammed the president’s proposed budget for 2027, saying it would be “disastrous for federal employees and the taxpayers they serve.”
“All federal employees deserve a fair and competitive pay raise next year,” NTEU National President Doreen Greenwald said in a statement to MeriTalk. “The civilian workforce often works alongside their counterparts in the military to deliver vital government services to Americans – and they also deserve a raise that keeps up with the rising cost-of-living.”
“Failing to provide a fair and competitive pay increase makes it harder for employees to make ends meet as costs continue to rise and slashing agency budgets harms the delivery of critical government services that Americans rely on,” Greenwald added. “NTEU will work with our allies on Capitol Hill to defeat these harmful proposals and ensure that federal employees are honored for their public service with fair pay raises and adequate resources for their agencies.”