Skip to main content

Statement from NARFE National President Richard Thissen on the announced Senate bipartisan budget deal:

February 8, 2018

“With the release of a two-year budget deal, federal employees and retirees receive some much-needed relief. Relief from the continuing threat of another government shutdown. Relief from austerity-level budget caps and the threat of sequestration. And most importantly, relief from knowing that their earned pay and benefits will not be targeted to pay for an increase in the budget caps.

“After federal employees contributed more than $120 billion in lost pay and benefits over the last several years, NARFE members have been diligent in sounding the drumbeat that federal employees’ and retirees’ earned benefits are not a piggy bank. Congress heeded their call, and no cuts to federal pay and benefits are included in the budget deal.

“The budget deal provides the necessary framework to ensure a path forward that avoids a government shutdown and ultimately ends the continued string of short-term funding extensions that limit agencies’ ability to spend money wisely. The deal also provides necessary relief from the recession-era discretionary spending caps that have squeezed federal agency budgets, for both defense and domestic priorities, limited government operations and caused employee furloughs.”