Senate committee approves 3.6% raise

The Senate Appropriations Committee Tuesday approved a 3.6 percent average raise in 1999 for federal civilian employees.

The proposed raise comes as part of the 1999 Treasury-Postal appropriations bill. It is half a percent higher than the 3.1 percent raise President Clinton proposed in his fiscal 1999 budget.

In May, the House approved a 3.6 percent raise for the military as part of the Defense authorization bill. But the Senate's version of the Defense authorization bill and both the House and Senate versions of the Defense appropriations bill set the military raise at 3.1 percent.

Traditionally, military and civilian personnel receive the same raise each year. The president sets the raise level each August. In fiscal 1998, federal employees received an average 2.8 percent pay raise.