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NARFE’S 115th Congress Voting Scorecard Key Resource for Voters, Media Amidst Contentious Political Environment, Midterm Elections


Alexandria, Va.
(October 3, 2018) Today, the National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE) released its Voting Scorecard of the 115th Congress, a guide that details how representatives and senators voted in 2017 and 2018 (to date) on legislation pertaining to the pay and earned federal benefits of current and retired federal employees.

“In order for members of the federal community to make educated decisions during the upcoming midterm elections, it’s imperative that they know how their respective members of Congress voted on legislation affecting them and their families. The NARFE 115th Congress Scorecard does precisely that and is all the more important this year due to the extremely divisive political environment, which has included an abundance of misinformation campaigns targeting both incumbents and new candidates,” said NARFE President Richard G. Thissen.

Of the 1,079 House and 564 Senate roll-call votes cast between January 3, 2017 and August 1, 2018, NARFE identified eight House and six Senate votes in which federal employee and retiree interests were at stake.

Regarding the eight House votes:
•    Three were on budget resolutions that either targeted federal retirement and health benefits or expressed opposition to such cuts.
•    Two were on government funding measures to prevent or end a government shutdown.
•    Two were on the application or re-adoption of the Holman Rule, which allows House members to single out individuals or groups of federal employees for political reasons.
•    One was on a bipartisan budget deal to lift sequestration caps on spending levels without targeting employees for cost offsets.

Regarding the six Senate votes:
•    Two were on budget resolution amendments that targeted federal retirement or health benefits.
•    Two were on government funding measures to prevent or end a government shutdown.
•    One was on a bipartisan budget deal that lifted sequestration caps on spending levels without federal pay or benefits used as cost offsets.
•    One was on a bill that included a 1.9 percent pay raise for federal employees.

Each vote is significant due to the federal community’s strong presence nationwide, represented in every congressional district. According to data released by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) last year, the total number of federal employees and annuitants equaled 5,085,848 of which 1,816,808 are federal employees and 631,888 are United States Postal Service (USPS) employees. The number of federal employee annuitants increased to 2,113,415, while the number of survivor annuitants decreased to 523,737.
 
The 115th Congress Scorecard appears in the October 2018 issue of NARFE Magazine. While its intent is to inform voters and empower federal employees to be their own advocates, it does not serve as an endorsement for any political candidate. Media may request complementary copies of the print edition.
 

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The National Active and Retired Federal Employees Association (NARFE), one of America’s oldest and largest associations, was founded in 1921 with the mission of protecting the earned rights and benefits of America’s active and retired federal workers. The largest federal employee/retiree organization, NARFE represents the interests of 5 million current and future federal annuitants, spouses and survivors.

Jill Talley
NARFE Deputy Director, Public Relations
jtalley@narfe.org
(703)838-7760